The Cursed Apple
by delightful-fear
Summary: Harry eats a cursed apple and is stuck in a state like sleeping death. No one seems to know how to break the curse. Can Draco somehow help him, even though they haven't seen each other in years? Would he even want to? (DRARRY, AU-Future Fic)
1. Chapter 1

*Things are pretty dark for Harry in this chapter, but will lighten up soon...

...

Harry pulled off his muddy, wet Auror robes, dropping them on the floor in a soggy pile, and staggered over to his chair. He felt completely drained.

Ron looked just as bad, his skin pale and drawn. He grabbed a towel and rubbed it briskly over his face and hair, leaving it sticking up in places. "I could really use some hot tea and a sandwich."

Not caring that the towel was a bit damp, Harry used it on his own hair. "Well, it's your turn. I got it last time."

Rolling his eyes, Ron stood up to take off his own robes and made his way to the office kitchenette. At this time of night, hardly anyone else was in the office and the canteen was closed. Luckily, the kitchen stocked some basics.

Casting a warming spell, Harry felt a lot better, although his stomach was grumbling loudly. In their line of work, they used up a lot of energy and couldn't always take meal breaks. The stake out had gone on much longer than expected, but at least they had caught the thief in the end.

Pulling out a fresh quill and the forms they would need to complete before going home, Harry sighed in frustration. He loved so many aspects of being an Auror. Investigating leads, finding clues, hunting down and capturing suspects. But he loathed doing all the paperwork and reports, especially when all he wanted was a huge meal, a hot shower and ten hours of sleep.

 _How bloody long was Ron going to take making that tea?_ Harry glared towards the kitchenette, hearing Ron fumbling around and likely screwing it all up somehow. He knew he was just grumpy due to low blood sugar and tiredness.

On the corner of his desk was his overflowing inbox of mail, forms and files stacked haphazardly. His gaze landed on an opened box perched on top, and he picked it up to look closer. Something must have arrived during his shift and a coworker left it for him.

The simple cardboard box wasn't too large, and any outer wrappings must have been removed. Harry lifted the green tissue paper and was surprised to see three apples inside; one green, one gold, and one red. They looked shiny and perfect, and Harry's stomach gave another rumble at the sight of them. _Surely it wouldn't hurt to nibble on one until Ron came back with their snack._

The red apple looked the most appealing, and Harry picked it up, putting the box down on the desk. He took a big bite, his teeth crunching through the firm peel, tasting the sweet juiciness of the fruit. It was delicious, and Harry made a small pleased sound before taking another bite.

"Hey! I was barely gone five minutes and you are eating something else?" Ron grumbled, setting the tray laden with a teapot, mugs, sandwiches and biscuits onto his desk with a thump.

Harry grinned at the good-natured complaints and helped unload the tray. "There's more if you want one." He gestured to the box, but Ron seemed content with his sandwich.

Taking a long sip of tea, Harry savored the warmth seeping through him. He had needed that.

Setting the mug down, he picked the apple back up to take another bite. His fingers slipped, and the fruit dropped to the floor, rolling under a coworker's desk. "Fuck!"

Ron laughed. "Serves you right."

Harry shot a glare at his friend, before getting on his knees to peer under the desk. "It will be fine if I rinse it off." It was worth the bother.

"Woah..." A wave of dizziness had Harry grabbing the edge of a desk to keep from falling over. "I feel strange."

Setting down his half-eaten sandwich, Ron's hands reached out for his shoulders but he wasn't quick enough. Harry fell to the floor, completely unconscious.

...

"What the hell happened?" Hermione asked, her concerned eyes sweeping over Ron quickly.

Ron shook his head, sinking back on to the cushioned bench. "I have no bloody idea. One minute he was chatting normally with me, the next he was passed out on the floor. When he didn't come to, I apparated us to St. Mungos. They've been working on him since then."

Nodding, Hermione went to talk to the Healers. Her friend Delilah was working and Ron knew she would get to the bottom of this better than he had.

Within ten minutes, she returned, her face looked troubled. Instinctively, he took her hand in his, rubbing it soothingly, and she leaned into his side. They both needed the comfort. "It's not good, I'm afraid."

"He's still unconscious?" Ron's eyes flicked to the clock on the wall. He had been here over an hour. They had both had many visits to St. Mungos in their line of work, but hadn't had any major injuries. So far.

Hermione nodded slowly. "They don't think he's unconscious. Or in a coma. But it's something similar."

"I already told them exactly what happened. A routine stake out. The suspect was not very good at magic. He was easy to take down, once he showed up. He didn't attack or hex us..." Ron wracked his memories for anything unusual. The hospital staff had already questioned him thoroughly.

"Harry wasn't acting strange or anything?" Hermione asked, her mind obviously searching just as hard for answers.

Ron shook his head, feeling miserable. "No, no. Tired and cold, we both were. Hungry...he was so hungry he didn't even wait for me to make him a sandwich."

Hermione stilled. "What? He ate something you didn't?"

"Just an apple. He had a box of them on his desk." Ron shrugged.

She jumped up. "Come on, let's get them."

Ten minutes later, they were in the office. Ron waved to the box on Harry's desk, and Hermione approached it cautiously, her wand out. He took out his own wand, performing his normal scans for malicious magic, but saw nothing amiss.

"There are two apples here. Where's the one Harry was eating?" Hermione was looking around, and Ron was soon searching with her.

Crawling around on the floor didn't unearth it either. "Perhaps the cleaning staff have been in, and threw it away?"

Standing up, Hermione brushed the dust off her knees. "This place hasn't been cleaned for at least a couple days."

"Well, it didn't just disappear, did it?" Ron felt frustrated.

Opening a magical containment unit, Hermione carefully maneuvered the apple box with magic, not touching it directly. She closed the unit with a snap. "It's hard to say, isn't it? Let's take these apples back to St. Mungos. Maybe there's a link to what happened with Harry."

...

Three days later, Delilah came into Harry's room, and nodded at Hermione and Ron in greeting. They looked tired, barely taking turns to go home to sleep a little, shower and change, before coming back to be at Harry's side.

"We have run all the regular tests and had the specialists see him. We have come up empty, so far." Delilah sat on the edge of Harry's bed, looking down at the couple with deep concern.

Ron was distressed. "How can that be? It's been three days, already! You haven't found anything at all?"

Hermione squeezed his hand, trying to calm him. "What about those apples? Anything odd about them?"

"Not so far. We are continuing to examine them."

"I still haven't found out where they came from. They must have been given to Harry somehow, since he wouldn't have brought them from home in a box. But all packages to the offices are fully scanned. Nothing dangerous could get through that." Ron had been in contact with his manager, investigating this side of things.

Hermione nodded in agreement. "That's for sure. Aurors make a lot of enemies, and Harry probably has more than most."

Ever since the end of the war, they had learned to be very cautious around mail and packages. There were many sore losers who would delight in causing trouble from afar. Luckily, most of the worst ones had left the country to establish new lives in Europe or further afield.

"We don't know the exact cause, but we can see the effect. He is being drawn into a deeper unconscious state each day, almost like a sleeping death. He is getting less responsive." Delilah said, her eyes remorseful.

Hermione and Ron gasped, and she turned into his comforting hug. It took a couple minutes for them both to gather themselves.

"You mean he could...die?" Hermione blinked back her tears. She had to be strong for Harry now.

Delilah reached out, touching her friend's arm. "Yes, if things progress the way they are going, it's a definite possibility. And without knowing the cause, our treatments are useless."

Ron swallowed hard. "What can we do?" It was so hard to come to terms with this, his vibrant friend who a week ago was fighting three wizards at once, grinning at Ron when he had them all stunned at his feet.

"Sometimes people in comas respond better to familiar environments and people. Hearing voices they know." Delilah said softly.

Hermione nodded slowly. "So, we can take him home? Get him as comfortable as possible and talk to him lots? Is that all we can do?"

"Sorry to be so blunt about this, but friend to friend, if these are his last few days, isn't that what he would want?" Delilah sighed. "We can supply a monitor for his vitals and a port key to bring him right back if he gets worse."

...

It was easier having him at home. Ron and Hermione took leaves from their jobs and took turns sitting with Harry. Friends stopped in often, and they left Harry alone with them to say what they wanted to say. Most left his bedroom after thirty minutes with tear-swollen eyes, hugging Ron and Hermione tight before they left.

Hermione was not giving up, of course. She had the dining room table covered with research books on all sorts of subjects, often consulting with experts she had come to know over the years. Even when she sat with Harry, she often took a book in with her, reading to him and asking him questions. Pondering things aloud.

Ron brought out his old scrapbooks, flipping through the photos his mother had carefully organized, the clippings from the newspapers. So many of their adventures together at Hogwarts, and on the last years as Aurors. He talked about old times to Harry, hoping just hearing Ron's voice taking about good times might bring him back.

But day after day, he got slowly worse. Delilah did daily house calls as a favor to Hermione, and never had encouraging news.

...

"Ron! Get Ginny here right away!" Hermione threw open the door to the guest bedroom, startling Ron so much he dropped the book he had been holding.

He looked over at Harry, somehow expecting him to open his eyes to Hermione's excited command out of pure instinct, but he was unmoving as ever. "Ginny? Why Ginny?" Ron turned back to his fiancée, glancing down to the old book she held in one hand. It was a relief to see her looking excited and hopeful, after a week of quiet dread and no good news.

She grabbed his arm, dragging him over to the fireplace in the living room. "Just get her here! I'll tell you both at once!" She spun away, back to her books before Ron could ask more questions.

It took reaching his mother to find out where Ginny was competing, and going through some other people before he was able to speak to her. She promised to be there as soon as an emergency port key could be arranged.

She was the only member of the Weasley family who hadn't been by in the last week. Her team's schedule had her traveling a lot, and she had been planning to stop by on the weekend when they were back in England. It said a lot about how much her relationship with Harry had faded over the years, reduced to polite friends only. Why did Hermione think it was so important that she come now?

...

His sister looked tanned and fit, sitting on their sofa as Ron handed her a cup of tea with a splash of milk.

"Shall I just go in to see him now?" Ginny's tone was calm, but Ron knew her well enough to hear the tremble she tried to hide.

Tucking her leg underneath her as she sat down, Hermione shook her head. "Not just yet. Look," she sighed, taking Ginny's hand in her own. "I know things between Harry and you have been...distant...since the war."

"Distant? She's in another country most of the time!" Ron scoffed, getting an irritated glance from his sister.

Ginny pulled her hand away from Hermione's, shifting slightly in discomfort. "There is no 'Harry and me'. Not for years. We have both moved on. Why have you called me back here?"

Hermione made a calming motion to both of them, years of dealing with the Weasley siblings giving her the advantage. "But you two were a couple, back then. That's why I asked Ron to bring you here."

Grabbing the old book, she flipped through it impatiently. "The only thing that has come up in all my research is a possible connection to the apple. There's an old German story, about a woman going into a 'sleepless death' after taking a bite from a red apple."

"Sleepless death?" Ron cringed at the words.

"Yes, but there was a way out of it, in the story. Love's first kiss." Hermione shut the book, placing it on the floor before grabbing Ginny's hand again. "I know it's a long shot, but I'm desperate to try anything at this point."

Ron picked up the book, staring at it incredulously. "This is a fairy tale book! Are you seriously taking Harry to be some virginal princess awaiting his prince to save him from some bloody dragon? You expect him to wake up from a kiss?"

Hermione flipped her hair back over her shoulder, glaring at Ron. "Shut up."

Ginny shook her head, pulling her hand away again. "You said 'love's first kiss'. I don't want to shock you, but that ship sailed a long, long time ago. Plus, I don't love him that way any more. He's more like a brother now."

Hermione stood, holding her hand imploringly out to Ginny. "Please? Would you just try? What could it hurt, giving him one little kiss? You are here already and if it doesn't work, you can still sit and talk to him afterwards."

Reluctantly, the professional Quidditch player stood and followed Hermione towards the guest bedroom.

...

An hour later, Ron gave his sister a tight hug goodbye, before she scooped up some floo powder to go visit their parents.

Hermione's arms were crossed over her chest. "Do you know how to get ahold of Cho Chang?"

...

The next few days were a flurry of contacting people and having them pop around to see Harry. Hermione was inexhaustible when it came to research, talking to all of Harry's contacts to find whom he had dated over the years. Ron thought it was useless to bring them to the house when it hadn't worked with Ginny or Cho. But Hermione had an idea stuck in her head and she wouldn't stop until she had exhausted all the options.

...

-A/N: This is my first Harry Potter fandom story. I am not a complete expert, so gentle corrections are appreciated. Lately, I've been reading a lot of Drarry fanfics and have been intrigued about how the boys were doing after Hogwarts.

-This fic is complete in draft form with five chapters, about 18K words or so. I'll be posting frequently.

-I took inspiration from a well known fairy tale, but the story goes a lot of different places with it.


	2. Chapter 2

There was a soft knock on the door, and a house elf opened it slightly. "There's a Ms. Granger here to see you, sir."

Draco's back stiffened, and he stopped stirring his potion for a few seconds. The lime green fluid started to clump immediately. Swearing, Draco stirred it quickly again. "Did she say what she wanted?"

"No, sir. Just that it was an urgent matter."

Sighing, Draco's shoulders dropped back down. After a decade of not seeing the school crowd, what could possibly be 'urgent' now?

"Fine, Mino. Would you please keep stirring this for me? I'll get her to leave quickly."

The house elf nodded and took over the cauldron.

Untying his bib apron as he walked across the lawn to the big house, Draco pulled it off and ran a hand through his hair. He was dressed in old, simple clothes, not expecting any company today, but at least the apron protected his clothes from lime green splatters.

Mino had left his guest in the formal living room with a tea tray. Draco's stomach tightened at seeing the woman sitting there, remembering the last time she had been in the manor. It must be something truly important for her to return now.

"Ms. Granger." Draco went for a bland, neutral greeting.

The woman rose from the sofa, her face still attractive and her eyes bright with intelligence. Her hair was shoulder length now, and layered to make the most of her natural curl. She wore simple black trousers and a blue jumper. "Mr. Malfoy."

Her eyes were taking him in as well, and Draco straightened his posture. He had filled out since his school years, his hair darkened slightly. He had nothing to be ashamed of, and yet it was hard to hold her gaze.

"I'm sorry to do this." Hermione said, stepping forward and taking a firm grasp of his wrist. Before he could jerk back from her touch, she had apparated them away.

"What the fuck!" Draco stepped back, almost falling over in his haste to get away from her. He looked around, finding himself in some old cramped house, in an upstairs hallway with closed bedroom doors surrounding them.

Hermione had a very determined Gryffindor set to her jaw as she stepped closer. "I wouldn't have brought you here like this if it wasn't a matter of life or death."

Draco scoffed, glaring down at the short woman. "Life or death?"

"Harry's." She said firmly. "Harry Potter. Don't you read the news at all?" She gave him an exasperated look at his lack of comprehension. "The papers have been full of rumors and speculation!"

Draco scrunched his eyebrows down at the words she flung at him. "So you are saying Potter is about to die? And somehow I'm involved? I haven't seen any of you for years! I'm rarely away from the manor."

So many of his friends and relatives had fled England after the war, settling all over Europe. Fresh new starts. Draco had declined their invitations to join them, hunkering down at the manor, content to do his own work. When he did go out, he still got glares and rude comments, even after so many years. He had stopped reading the papers. Detached from most things. It was easier, better, that way.

Even his parents had left, spending time at their various houses. Italy, Austria, Norway. He missed his mother a lot at first. Now her letters were monthly at most, still encouraging him to visit, never mentioning coming back themselves.

Now Hermione Granger has abducted him and seemed to be accusing him of harming Potter somehow. Maybe he should have left the country like everyone wanted. It wasn't worth dealing with this type of shit. A convenient scapegoat for any trouble.

Hermione just sighed, her gaze softening. "Look, just do something quick and painless for me, and you will be back at the manor in a half hour. OK?"

"'Something'? Like participate in a lineup to be identified by a witness? No thanks!" Draco reached for his wand, preparing to apparate himself home.

The woman stepped closer, her huge brown eyes beseeching. "Please, please, please, Draco. It's nothing like that."

Maybe it was the use of his name. Or the quiet begging. Or how truly distressed she looked under her brave exterior. Whatever it was, he didn't resist when she pulled him to a closed bedroom door and took him inside.

Whatever he had expected, never could he have imagined seeing Harry Potter lying motionless in a bed. The room was filled with flowers and get well soon cards, reminding Draco of a hospital room.

Draco's eyes were mostly drawn to Potter. Taking in how he had aged, his body and face that of a fit man in his late twenties. Small scars showed his life as an Auror hadn't been soft. Mostly Draco was struck by how still the man seemed. Quiet, unnaturally so. There was no way to mistake this for mere sleep.

"He looks dead." Draco said softly, almost to himself. Potter's face was extremely pale, a stark contrast to his hair that looked almost black in this light.

Hermione stepped up close to his side. "It's like an extremely deep coma, but getting worse every day. The Healers can't do anything."

Draco ran a hand over his face. This was suddenly extremely real. He could feel the complete absence of Potter. His energy, his magic, his spirit...it was dialed down so low Draco could hardly sense it. And he had always been able to sense that. Almost too much. To the point of distraction.

"What can I do?"

Hermione let out a relieved breath. "It sounds ridiculous, but...I need you to kiss him. On the lips. I'll wait outside."

And with that, she was gone, the bedroom door slamming behind her. Leaving him completely alone with Potter.

He looked at the door in shock, and then back at the too still man on the bed. A part of him wanted to think this was an elaborate joke, somehow recorded to capture him weeping over 'the savior' to be splashed over every newspaper. But Granger wasn't that type of person.

And Potter...this was no feigned state. He was truly at death's door.

Just kiss him, a comatose man, and leave. That was her request. Somehow she thought this would help? Was it some curse that Potter had to be kissed by the person he hated the most? Some type of bizarre display of post war reconciliation of opposing sides?

If he walked away without doing it, and Potter later died, would he feel at fault? Like he should have followed the odd request, just to assuage possible future guilt?

And what was one little kiss anyways? Potter was in no state to remember it. It could be quick. It would be done. If it helped somehow, good. If it didn't, at least Granger couldn't blame him at all. Would that matter?

Draco's heart was beating hard, pounding, and he swayed on his feet. Swearing to himself, Draco sat on the edge of the bed, looking down at Potter. "I've heard that people in comas can hear people talking to them. Potter...Harry...," he fumbled at using the name, but it felt right. "I'm useless at this but I want to apologize for my part in the war. Thank you for your help at our trial. Say that I forgive you for those times you hurt me. The past is in the past. We were only kids then, caught up in something so overwhelming."

If nothing else came of this, finally saying those words aloud to this man felt right.

"I've said that for me. And for you, if you can hear me. What I'll do next, it's for Granger...Hermione." Draco let out a shuddering breath, feeling strange at saying her full name.

Before he could think more about it, Draco put a hand on the bed beside Potter's pillow, and lowered himself down. His blond hair flopped forward, hanging over his face, but he just kept moving, licking his dry lips once before setting them against Potter's.

Potter's lips were cool and unyielding. Draco pulled back a hair's breath, emotions rising up in him strongly like a wave crashing over him, overwhelming and deadly. He let out a soft sob, a tiny intake of breath, and a tear splashed down on to Potter's pale cheek. Horrified, Draco pulled back and dashed the tear off Potter's skin with a finger and sat upright on the edge of the bed. He couldn't catch his breath, chest heaving, shoulders drawn in tight, as he tried to push everything back down. Get back in control.

It took a few minutes, but eventually his heart stopped pounding, his breathing calmed. He ran his hands through his hair, sitting up straighter.

With a deep sigh, he stood up, and turned to look back down at Potter. Harry Potter. Looking exactly the same as before. His cheek dry, hair unmussed. Had he expected anything different? For the man's eyes to suddenly flutter open, and glow in appreciation at seeing Draco at his side?

"Goodbye Harry."

Swallowing hard, Draco marched over to the door, knowing that this was probably the last time he would ever see the man.

Hermione was waiting outside the door, her eyes seeking out his eagerly. After seeing his face, the light in her eyes dimmed in disappointment, and she turned away.

Draco placed a hand on her upper back, a comforting gesture. Probably the only time he had willingly touched the witch. After a few seconds, he pulled out his wand, and apparated home.

It felt comfortable there. Silent. Safe.

...

The next few days he asked Mino to get him the daily paper, bracing himself for news of Potter's death. There were stories about him, wild speculations based on hardly any facts. He felt numb and could hardly work.

The fourth day, there was an owl. Granger's owl. With a request he come to the house tomorrow.

Draco barely slept.

...

Knocking on the door felt decidedly odd. A Malfoy visiting Gryffindors? His stomach was clenched in knots.

The door opened and Granger was there, her eyes shining, her smile wide. "Draco! Come in!"

He almost tripped entering the house, surprised by her use of his first name as much as her expression. His heart was pounding again, his stomach churning even more than before. "Um...Hello Ms. Granger."

She chuckled, lightly slapping his shoulder. "Oh, call me Hermione. None of that formal stuff in this house."

Leading him into the living room, he was surprised to find Weasley there. The redhead jumped up on seeing him, his expression a mixture of his old wariness mixed with discomfort. Draco was sure he looked much the same.

"Um...Malfoy...Draco," Ron corrected after a glare from Hermione. "Please sit down. Coffee or tea?"

The coffee table had an impressive spread of desserts, scones, cheese and fruit. Draco raised his eyebrows as he sunk on to a floral sofa. "Coffee, two sugars." Apparently this was going to be a tea party of some sort.

"This is perfect!" Hermione gushed, jumping up and running out of the room.

Ron smiled after her, and passed Draco his beverage. "You'll have to excuse her. Um...us. We have barely slept since this all started a couple weeks ago. Don't people go a bit balmy when they are sleep deprived?"

Draco made a non-committal noise, and sipped his drink. Coffee probably wasn't the best choice, given the state of his stomach.

"Here's our guest of honor." Hermione announced triumphantly, appearing back in the doorway of the living room.

Draco looked back at her, and she gave a little tug. Harry Potter was standing beside her, giving a weak smile her way.

Harry fucking Potter. Alive. Standing. Breathing. Alive.

Draco's heart pounded so hard he had to set his coffee cup down and lean against the back of the sofa to recover.

Harry Potter was apparently alive, but still very, very weak. Hermione's arm was tightly around his waist, holding him up, and she guided him to a chair. Ron tucked a blanket over his friend's legs, and passed him a cup of tea. Potter smiled a little, and batted away their fussing hands.

Hermione finally settled in her own chair with a coffee, still beaming. Her warm brown eyes went between Potter and himself. It was weird.

Ron rolled his eyes at her. "M-Draco, we invited you here so you could see that Harry is doing much better. He's obviously going to need time to recover, but we are so happy he's walking and talking."

"And you were the person who visited him last, so we figured you should be the first to see him awake again. To thank you for your help." Hermione interjected.

"Help? You helped me?" Potter set down his empty cup, looking Draco's way. He was still so pale, so weak. His energy level was still sitting dangerously low, and Draco wondered if it was too much for him to be out of bed already.

Turning to Hermione, Draco gave her a steady look. He didn't know why she had asked him to come the first time. Let her explain it.

"Oh, don't get her going on those crazy theories she cooked up. Like I said, we were hardly sleeping and getting a little desperate. Hermione's a brilliant witch, but perhaps we can leave all that stuff in the past. The important thing is Harry's awake and we need to celebrate that." Ron glared at his fiancée.

Draco was a little impressed when Hermione simply nodded in response. Ron in school hadn't stood up to her as effectively. Looking over the Auror, he could see that Weasley was strong physically, but also had a quiet confidence gained by years in his type of work. Facing danger frequently.

The conversation after that was light, obviously for Potter's benefit, and Draco just gave polite replies when addressed. Mostly he watched the interplay between these three people he had known since he was 11 years old. Got to know them a little for who they were now.

By the time Draco had a third chocolate truffle, Potter was visibly drooping. This time, Ron was the one supporting the man as he helped him back to bed.

Hermione looked at the clock, and bit her lip fretfully.

"What is it?" Draco asked, now that they were alone.

Glancing to the hallway to ensure it was empty, Hermione leaned in a little closer. "Ron is dismissing my theory, but I think your visit is what pulled Harry out of...what had him. He woke up the next morning."

"All I did was talk to him a little. And then did what you asked. How could that have helped?" Draco arched an eyebrow at the witch. Perhaps Ron was right about her current state of mind.

She clearly wasn't impressed at being doubted. Her jaw took on a firmer set. "Whatever happened, the effect seems to be wearing off. He was awake four hours the first day. Three the next. Today, it was only around two."

"Well, perhaps he needs bed rest, not tea parties!" Draco rolled his eyes, and waved at the half-eaten glut of food.

Ron returned, plopping down on the sofa beside Draco and eating one of the truffles. "Are you two arguing? Like old times? Detente over?"

Draco was a little impressed that the Weasel even knew a word like 'detente'.

"I'm trying to get Draco to give Harry another 'treatment'." Hermione hissed at her partner, clearly frustrated with him.

"Oh Merlin! That's why you were so insistent on inviting him over today and bought all this food". Ron chuckled, shaking his head at her. "Getting him softened up before you ask him to..."

Draco sprung up off the sofa. "Well, you two obviously have a lot to discuss. I'll just leave you to it. I'm glad Potter is better. Bye."

He rushed towards the door as fast as his long legs could carry him. But somehow that witch was blocking the door before he could open it.

"It will just take five minutes. Then you can go." Hermione said, clutching his arm.

Draco huffed. "Let go of me, you crazy woman."

She shook her head, her stubborn Gryffindor nature on full display. "Just do it one more time. If he doesn't improve tomorrow, it will disprove my theory and I won't bother you again."

"No."

"Afraid I'm right? He's asleep again. He won't even know you were there, just like last time." She was almost as convincing as a Slytherin.

Draco swallowed hard, looking away from her eyes that saw too much. He couldn't imagine kissing Harry again now, so soon after seeing him awake and talking. It wasn't some crazy one-time death's door request. His emotions weren't the same as last time.

Still, what if her crazy theory was true? If he did it today, he would know if it really helped or not. Five minutes now and he would know by tomorrow.

Looking back at Hermione, he gave a tiny nod.

She took her victory with grace, simply leading him up the stairs. On the landing, she made him wait while she popped in to check on Potter.

She gave him a nod when she came back out. "Thank you, Draco. This means the world to me. Truly."

He blinked in surprise at her words and nodded again. His breath shuddered as he took a few deeper ones, trying to steel himself for the task at hand.

Don't make such a big production out of it. Just kiss the man again and leave.

He tried to keep those words in his head as he went into the bedroom. It looked the same, but instead of being filled with a feeling of dread, it felt more like an invalid's room. The man on the bed was sleeping, not in some type of coma. His energy hummed low, but it was there.

In the quiet of the bedroom, Draco was even more aware of that energy. His natural sensitivity to it was a blessing now. It warmed him to know it was stronger than the last time he had been in this room.

Stepping to the side of the bed, Draco looked down at the resting man. His heart was thumping again, his breathing shallower. He consciously calmed himself.

Just do this and go.

Leaning down, his kiss was firm but short. Potter's lips felt better. Warmer, with more give. More alive.

Draco straightened quickly, turning away to calm himself again. This was it. The last time he would ever have to do this.

Hermione said nothing when he exited the room, simply leading him back downstairs and giving his forearm a squeeze before he stepped through the door.

...

The next day she sent him an owl.

 **He was awake five hours today. -HG**

Fuck.

...

"So, what do you propose we do?" Draco took a long sip of his fire whiskey, and glared at the witch sitting again on his sofa.

Hermione pulled her gaze from Mino, her disapproval clear on her face, and took a sip of her tea. "I'm just happy you agreed to this meeting."

Sighing, Draco waved a dismissive hand. "Enough polite bullshit. Spit out what you want, Granger."

"Hermione," she corrected with a small smile. "I've researched what I can, and I'm going with the tentative theory that it is a type of complex curse, linked to the fruit Harry ate."

Draco's eyebrows rose at that. "A curse that the Healers, Aurors and other specialists can't detect or break?"

She shrugged. "When we tried to pin down the source of the package, there was some indication it could be from Germany. Their ancient forms of magic differ from ours."

"Germany! Who would send something from there to Potter?"

"Many former Death Eaters have settled on the continent. He has enemies everywhere." Hermione said simply. A fact she had accepted long ago.

Draco finished off his fire whiskey and poured himself another. Conversations like this needed some softening around the edges. "So, some ancient German curse."

"Undetectable to get through security at the Auror office. Hard to break now."

"But you think you can?"

Hermione got up, pacing around the large room. He had deliberately scheduled the meeting here to discomfort her, a petty retribution for her recent requests. "My research shows the apple was likely cursed during a certain phase of the moon. Using the fruit and the full moon tie the magic to nature, making it less detectable."

Draco nodded, considering this. He had certain potions that he brewed at certain times, increasing the potency that way. "Alright...and..."

She took his prompt to continue. "I think giving him the 'treatment' daily for a whole moon cycle could break the curse."

"A whole month." Draco repeated, his skepticism evident in his dry tone.

"Yes! Don't you see? Each day he would be able to stay up a little longer, get a little stronger. Be more himself. Maybe he would have to stay up all night at the end to really defeat it." Hermione stopped in her pacing to face Draco.

Her reasoning was sound, and Draco couldn't argue that it made sense. But a whole month? A month of kissing Potter?

Draco stood, facing Hermione. "Why kissing? Is it really necessary? Why from me?"

"I have no bloody idea." She slumped at the questions, sitting back on the sofa and pouring out more tea. "You know I was raised as a Muggle...and they have this thing called the 'Kiss of Life'."

At Draco's disbelieving glare, she rushed on. "That's just a slang term for it. Officially it's called 'Mouth to Mouth Resuscitation'. Muggles use it to help someone breathe again when they almost drown."

"So, instead of kissing Potter, you want me to blow air into his mouth?" Draco drawled, sitting back down.

Hermione reddened a little, looking flustered. "No, no...just stick to what you were doing. We know it works."

Draco sighed. "OK. Let's give it a trial run of a week. Shall I just pop by around ten pm each night to give him a goodnight kiss? He should be sound asleep by then." A week should be enough time to see real improvement. There was no way he would commit to a month up front.

"Goodnight kiss. That's a nice way to put it." Hermione smiled at Draco.

Rolling his eyes, Draco took another healthy swallow of his drink. "Yes, nice and not at all creepy that I do it when he's sound asleep and not consenting."

Hermione grinned at that, her eyes sparkling with mirth. "Oh, you'd rather kiss Harry when he's awake? I'm sure that could be arranged."

She got up, walking with a little skip to her walk, as Draco sputtered and tried to think of an appropriate response. Stopping at the window, she looked out at the wide, manicured lawn. "It's so beautiful and peaceful out here."

Feeling relieved at the change of topic, Draco ambled to stand at the window next to hers. "I find it so. It's been my haven all these years. I'm surprised you are saying that though."

"Sometimes we need to leave the past in the past and look at things with fresh eyes." Hermione said softly, turning towards Draco. "I have another request."

"Oh Merlin, woman! What now? Want me to fuck the Queen fortnightly?"

She chuckled, not offended at his outburst. "The truth is Ron and I have taken a lot of time off work and have to return soon. I'd still like someone around to make sure Harry isn't overdoing things, to keep him on track..."

"You want me to move in with you for a month? No fucking way!"

"Come on. The house isn't as grand as this, but you would have your own bedroom. You'd be comfortable enough for a month. And you can judge for yourself if Harry is improving. Know when it's best to give him another 'dose'." Hermione could be very persuasive when she really wanted something.

"No! No! No!" Draco spun away from the window, just to get away from the infuriating witch. He really should have had this meeting at her place. Then he could have stomped out, slammed the door.

Hermione arched an eyebrow at him. "Why not?"

Draco had to stop for a minute to think. He had simply rejected the idea as impossible the moment she uttered it.

"Well, I have work here, you know. Potions."

"You could come back when Harry sleeps, when Ron or I am home."

"I prefer my own bed."

"Shrink it and move it to our house for a month."

"I'd have to be around you and Ron too much."

"We can ignore you if you prefer. Give you your space."

Draco was almost laughing by then, amused in spite of himself at her quick responses. It had been awhile since he'd talked this long with anyone. Or had a good argument.

"No, Hermione. Hire a babysitter for him or get a Weasley to move in."

"Or...," Hermione turned to him with a big wicked grin on her face, "Harry could stay here for the month."

"No!" This refusal was the loudest one yet.

"Think about it. You could work on your potions. You'd have your own bed. You'd be able to keep tabs on Harry easily. And...the best part...Ron and I wouldn't be around!" Hermione finished her argument with a saucy grin, looking far too proud with herself.

Damn. Hoisted with his own fucking petard.

Draco sighed. "How would you get Harry to stay here?"

Hermione shrugged. "Leave that to me. I'm sure he'd like to recover here, where it's peaceful and beautiful."

She seemed willfully blind about Harry's history with the manor as her own.

"Fine. If he agrees to it, we will try it for a week."

...

\- A/N: Wow! It's so nice to see that so many people have read the 1st chapter & given me such a warm welcome. Thanks!


	3. Chapter 3

"There. You are all settled in." Hermione said, setting down a large bouquet of flowers near Harry's bed.

Harry sighed. "I suppose so." This bedroom looked like the one at Ron and Hermione's. A double bed, cards from friends, more flowers than your typical funeral. He was too weak to fight her on it.

Just like he hadn't had the strength to argue against this move. Living for a month with Malfoy? What was she thinking? Still, they had put their life on hold for weeks, and he couldn't fight giving them a rest from all that. At least with Malfoy, the manor was big enough they could avoid each other. His team of house elves seemed to welcome him eagerly enough. They were likely used to looking after the whole family here with frequent guests. One month, and he'd be back on his own.

"We'll take you out for lunch in a few days, OK? You can tell us what living with Draco is like." Hermione said softly as she headed out the door.

Harry nodded in agreement, stretching out on the bed. That was another suspicious thing. Why were they all on a friendly first name basis now? Sure, maybe they bonded when Harry was in a coma, but this much?

Moving houses took a lot out of him. It was OK to take a short nap, wasn't it?

Harry snuggled into the soft bed, and was soon drifting off.

...

He awoke later in the day, the room much darker. A shadowy figure was there, and Harry realized it was Malfoy.

' _Lumos_.' Harry said, with a flick of his wand.

The room brightened, and Malfoy blinked down at Harry. "Oh, you are awake."

His surprised expression made Harry chuckle a little. "It seems so. What are you doing in my room?"

Malfoy shrugged. "Um...just making sure you are comfortable." He pulled out his wand and mumbled " _Evanesco_." The flower bouquets disappeared.

"Hey! Those were my flowers!" Harry was more amused than mad.

Malfoy shuddered. "Horrid things."

"Flowers? You seem to have a lot in your garden."

The taller man looked down his nose at Harry, the expression reminding him so much of their Hogwarts days. "Bouquets, especially around recovering people. Who wants to watch something beautiful slowly wither and die?"

Harry couldn't argue with that. "Thanks for letting me stay here, Malfoy."

"Whatever, Potter." It wasn't much of a reply, but all he gave before leaving the bedroom.

...

"Master Potter is asleep now, sir." Tupper reported to Draco a couple hours later.

Nodding, Draco made note of the time on a fresh piece of parchment. "Did he eat much?"

Topper gave him a full description. He had been with the Malfoys for generations.

"Thank you. Would you let me know when he awakes?"

The house elf agreed before leaving Draco to his potions.

An hour later, Draco was closing up his shed and wandered across the lawn. Thick grass below his feet muffled his steps, the only sounds was the wind blowing through the trees and the night insects chirping. The stars glowed bright here compared to in London, bright enough to see his way on the familiar path.

After a quick meal, he headed upstairs. The door to Potter's bedroom was open a tiny crack, to make it easier to check on him.

With a sigh, he crept into the room. He had almost gotten caught last time he tried to do this.

Starlight lit up his guest. Face bare of glasses, messy hair, features slack with sleep. One pillow was about to tumble off the edge of the bed, and Draco replaced it, leaning down to settle it against the headboard.

Looking down, Potter's face was close and he wasn't stirring. Feeling foolish as always, Draco gave his quick kiss, backing away fast in case Potter woke.

"Goodnight, Harry." Draco whispered as he shut the door.

His own bedroom was at the other end of the hall. He had never moved into the master suite, preferring the large room that overlooked the garden.

Stripping, he headed into the shower, making it good and hot. His shoulders ached from using the mortar and pestle to hand grind some herbs to a fine consistency. Many ingredients in potions had to be processed by hand, instead of by magic.

As the hot water poured over him, he thought about the man sleeping down the hall. A month, just the two of them, in this empty house. His teenage self would have loved this.

That started a flood of old, repressed fantasies. How many times had he thought about pulling Harry into a deserted washroom at Hogwarts, standing together naked in the showers?

He realized his hand had drifted lower, and didn't stop the images playing out in his mind. Simply updating them to be Harry as he was now, not the school version.

Towards the end, his mind flashed back to how Harry had looked minutes earlier. What if he woke up during one of these goodnight kisses? What if his hand buried itself in Draco's hair, pulling him in to deepen the kiss, kissing him back eagerly? The thought of that sent Draco over the edge.

Chuckling to himself when he dried off, Draco could not help but feel amused at the path his fantasies had taken. Kisses and hair tugging? What was next? Back rubs and handholding? He needed to get out more, even if it was to some muggle bars, just for some male company for a night.

...

The next few days went similarly, with Potter only awake a few hours. The house elves reported back to Draco, so he knew he was eating well and energetic enough to explore the house and the garden. Draco only saw him when he was asleep an hour or more, not wanting to risk getting caught. He couldn't deny that it seemed to be working. Potter was getting better, staying awake a little longer each day.

The downside of this was that Potter was getting bored. He was a man of action, so the library and piano didn't entertain him long.

Draco saw him more often exploring the garden near his shed, close to his special herbs and flowers.

With a sigh, he headed out into the sun. "How are you feeling, Potter?"

The recovering man spun around, looking at Draco through his glasses. It felt a bit strange, after seeing him so many nights without them. His bright eyes narrowed at the query. "I'm fine."

Draco rolled his eyes. "Don't be so suspicious. It's just a simple question."

"Where did you come from?"

"Well, Potter, when a lady and a man like each other very much, they do a special type of hug. My parents did this and nine months later I was born." Draco smirked happily.

Potter just shook his head in exasperation. "No, I meant where were you before talking to me?"

"My shed." Draco admitted, not seeing the point of keeping it secret.

"Why do you need a shed when you have a massive house to yourself?" Potter asked, looking at the simple one story structure.

It was a fair question. "I respect the manor and it's history. It's not really a good place to process stinkweed in though."

Potter chuckled, his small grin making Draco's breath catch a little.

"Speaking of which, can you help me harvest some?" Draco asked quickly, pointing towards the tall bunch in the garden.

Potter shook his head. "As tempting as that sounds, I'll pass."

"Suit yourself." Draco took his clippers out, tying off bundles of the plant before cutting the stems below the tie.

Potter watched, edging slightly closer. "Oh, that doesn't look too hard."

Draco scoffed. "You are here to get well. I'd hardly have you overexert yourself."

"Believe me, Malfoy, I want to get out of your hair as soon as possible."

The words almost made Draco cut the plant in the wrong spot, his mind flashing back to the fantasies he had last night.

Passing the clippers to Potter, he quickly told him where to cut the plants. They worked quietly together, quickly trimming the whole patch down.

Potter made the bundles into a neat pile. "What do you do with them now?"

"Eventually I use them in cold medicines and skin creams. It's a common ingredient." Draco picked up half the pile, and headed into the shed.

Potter picked up the rest, following Draco inside. At the drying rack, they again worked together to hang the bundles upside down.

Draco liked the help and the company, but felt exposed having Potter in his very private workspace. Even the house elves rarely came in here, only standing at the doorway to deliver messages. He even cleaned it himself, not wanting anything to disturb his work.

"You make a living doing this?" Potter asked, his eyes scanning over the rows of small bottles in the shelves.

Giving a little shrug, Draco was glad the shed wasn't brightly lit. "My parents are rich, but my inheritance is the house and a small trust fund that mostly goes to its maintenance. I need to work to have clothes and eat."

"And you don't exactly go for the cheap food or clothes." Potter teased. "Would you ever consider selling the house? Do you plan to marry and raise a family here?"

"Well, seeing how I'm gay, that's not very likely. Everyone has encouraged me to sell, but I'm still here." Draco found himself answering, being surprisingly honest.

Potter nodded, almost to himself. "And I keep Grimmauld Place, even though it's in terrible shape."

Draco suddenly felt it, a feeling he hadn't thought about before. Loneliness. With his parents living abroad, he really was like Potter. An only child, virtually parentless, without a family. They both had loyal friends, but in many ways they were on their own.

"You know that house belonged to my mother's side of the family? The Blacks." Draco commented.

Potter nodded. "There's a family tree in one of the rooms. You are on it. Sirius and Andromeda are burnt off."

"You seem closer to my extended family than I am." Draco said dryly.

"I spend time with Andromeda and Teddy often. You could come next time. She's your aunt, after all." Potter said, watching Draco closely.

He knew it was a test. Would Draco stand behind the pureblood values, and continue to shun a relative who had married a muggle-born wizard? Or had Draco moved past all that now?

Completing the hanging of the stinkweed, Draco cast a quick cleaning spell over their hands to remove the slight odor. "Perhaps I will."

...

Potter was staying awake up to seven hours by the second week. His energy was better as well.

It was a little surprising when Potter arrived in the dining room for supper the first time. Draco tended to eat a little late, around 7 pm, wanting to get most of his work done with natural light.

Potter hovered near the doorway. "Mino mentioned you were eating now, and suggested I come down."

"Bullshit. You are sick of eating your meals in bed like an invalid, and insisted he tell you when I eat." Draco corrected with a smirk. He didn't even need the house elves to report that to him. He knew Potter that well. The company was strangely welcome. "Well, sit down. Mino will fetch you a plate and everything."

Potter didn't argue with Draco's assessment, and strolled over to the long dining room table. Instead of sitting at the opposite end, he took the seat on Draco's left side.

"You are supposed to sit at the other end." Draco waved an imperious hand that direction, like shooing a fly away.

The Auror simply shrugged at the statement. "Ridiculous. How are we supposed to talk sitting like that?"

Draco watched as the house elves set a place for Potter, and soon had a hot meal in front of him. It was strange sitting with someone after being alone so long. When his parents were here, they sat at the opposite ends, with Draco in the middle on one side. It was ridiculously formal for everyday dining, now that he thought back on it.

"Well, you are sitting so close, you must have many interesting things to discuss with me."

Potter's appetite was good, digging enthusiastically into his roast chicken. Draco hadn't seen him eat since Hogwarts, but his manners were much better now. Using his napkin properly and never talking with his mouth full.

"I just wanted to ask if you had a spare broom around here. If not, I'll ask Ron to bring me one." Potter replied, placing a bare bone back on his plate.

Draco finished his bite of carrots before replying. "Why do you need a broom?"

Potter let out a chuckle. "I'm so bored I thought I'd help the house elves clean this dump."

The sarcastic answer only got a glare from Draco, so Potter held up his hands in a calming gesture. "OK, OK. I am bored, and walking around the grounds has made me think of our school days. All that time practicing on the Quidditch pitch."

"You are too weak, Potter! With my luck, you would fall off the damn thing and kill yourself, and I'd get the blame." Draco could all too easily imagine it. Death Eater kills our Savior!

Taking a long sip of his pumpkin juice, Potter sighed. "I think I know my own limits and I wouldn't go too long at first. I'd work up to longer sessions as I get stronger."

Draco could see how much this meant to Potter, his green eyes earnest. "Fine, with the condition that we go together and you listen to what I say." He feared Hermione the most if something did go wrong. Potter was his responsibility until the month was up.

"Perfect!" Potter's smile was unguarded and wide.

Draco had rarely seen him smile like that, especially at him, and it made him feel a bit strange. Potter was really an attractive man, and it had been far too long since he had been around one.

Luckily Potter didn't notice how quiet Draco got while considering this, happily chatting on about how Draco could show him the whole area around the manor.

...

"We are just doing a short flight today, about fifteen minutes or so. I want to see how tired it makes you afterwards." Draco said sternly, still feeling uneasy about allowing this.

Potter was nodding, obviously willing to agree to any condition to get flying. His enthusiasm was rubbing off on Draco, and by the time they kicked off, he was asking himself why he didn't do this more often.

They flew side by side, Draco pointing out the direction as he kept a close eye on Potter. The man's seat on the broom was stable, his face not showing anything but elation. It was the most alive Draco had seen him since that awful first night.

The Malfoy lands were vast, and bordered with many other wizarding families, so Draco felt safe letting them fly over them. They didn't have to worry about muggles spotting them out here.

They landed back on the Malfoy lawn, and Draco watched Potter for signs of weakness as he dismounted. He was a little tired, but managed fine. "We will keep to that length for the rest of the week."

"We are going again tomorrow? Brilliant." Potter said, carrying his broom into the house.

Warmth spread through Draco as he followed Potter inside. It was a strange thing, the way Potter's happiness made him feel good too. Perhaps it was simply about being a good host, making sure your guests enjoyed themselves. His mother had been excellent at that.

...

-A/N: I've restructured the chapters so there are seven now instead of five, but the story is still about 20K words long.


	4. Chapter 4

Between eating dinner together and the flying sessions, Potter often seemed to be near the potions shed during the day. Draco frequently got his help with the easier, menial tasks, like picking juniper berries. He needed a lot to make a potent essential oil.

"These are making me crave a good, icy Gin and Tonic." Potter commented as he picked. The fresh, piney scent surrounded them.

Draco sat up to stretch his back. "Juniper berries are used to flavor gin. But no alcohol for you until you are better. Preferably when you are out of my house." And not his responsibility.

"You are making gin with these?" Potter smirked, looking down at the dark blue berries.

Draco snorted softly at the question. "No, they have healing properties. You've been getting a few drops a day in your morning tea."

He had made up a general health concoction for Potter. In reality, his recovery was probably mostly due to that and having time to rest. He was awake longer and longer, up to over nine hours now.

Would he continue to improve without Draco's quick visits in the night? It still felt odd to sneak into a guest's bedroom to give him a secret kiss. Hermione has been so adamant that it was what had brought Potter out of his coma. And she had witnessed him reverting back a few days later. It must have been terrifying, see Potter doing poorly.

It wasn't worth the risk to stop doing it now. Potter was oblivious to it anyways.

The only one it was hard on was Draco. Every night he stood in the darkened bedroom, listening to Potter breathing slow and steady, his own heart pounding. There was the fear of Potter waking up during the kiss. But it was also something Draco couldn't deny to himself any longer. He liked kissing Potter. Liked the feel of those soft, warm lips. Liked feeling his breath against his face. Liked the intimacy of seeing Potter sleeping peacefully.

It was getting so he wanted more. Wanted Potter to return the kiss, respond to it. Wanted to push his hands into his dark hair, and make it even messier. Wanted to crawl into that bed and press their bodies together.

By the time they filled their baskets, it was getting late in the afternoon. Potter stood slowly, his motions a little stiff.

"Oh shit. You should have told me you were getting sore." Draco cursed his own distraction for not making Potter stop sooner.

Potter waved a dismissive hand. "This is nothing. I've dealt with far worse in my job. I'll be fine after a hot shower."

Draco nodded, watching with concerned eyes as his guest walked back to the manor. He would see if Potter was actually better at supper.

Going into the shed, Draco washed the berries and put them into a cauldron over low heat. It would take a day to extract all the helpful ingredients.

...

Potter made a small grunt as he stood up after they ate, and Draco nodded decisively. "A shower and resting haven't really done much for your back, have they?"

"It's fine. I'll take it easier tomorrow. Quit hovering over me." Potter chuckled, turning to climb the stairs.

Draco could see he was downplaying his pain though from the slow way he went up the stairs. Swearing to himself, he went to the shed and came back to the manor a few minutes later.

Potter was gone, so Draco knew he must be in his bedroom by now. Running up the stairs, he paused outside and then knocked softly.

"What?"

Draco took it as permission to go enter. Potter shot him an irritated glare, as he was about to pull on his pajama top. The bottoms were already on, riding low on his hips.

Draco's mouth felt suddenly dry. Potter's chest was surprisingly muscular, just a small amount of chest hair dusting over it. "Oh, I...um...have some massage oil here." He held up the dark bottle in his hand.

"You are offering to give me a massage?" Potter's eyes widened at that.

"To help your back. This oil is formulated for sore muscles." Draco could feel his face heating slightly, and hoped it wasn't too noticeable in the dimly lit room.

Potter seemed to consider it for a long moment, before giving a small nod. He threw the pajama top to a nearby chair and took off his glasses, setting them on the bedside table. He laid facedown on the center of the bed.

Draco's eyes scanned over the large expanse of bare skin, the handsome man lying on a bed waiting for him to touch him, and felt a surge of pure arousal. "Um...I'll get some towels. Be right back."

He rushed to his own room, taking deep breaths, trying to calm himself. He thought of the first time he had tried to kiss a girl, just testing if it was as good as all his friends had said. It had been completely disgusting, even worse when she tried to hug him afterwards.

The memories did the trick, cooling him down, and by the time he walked back to the guest bedroom he felt more in control.

Potter was in the same position, and Draco tried to view him as a patient. Someone he was trying to help, not creepily sneak-touching.

He hit the oil with a warming spell, and smoothed it over his hands first. He dragged them down Potter's back, his touch light.

Potter's muscles tightened at the first touch, but he relaxed as Draco continued, coating his back with the fragrant oil. "I can smell the juniper in that."

"It's a mixture of scents. Breathe it in. It's good for you."

"You know a lot about healing, it seems." Potter murmured, his voice sounding a little sleepy.

Draco glanced at the clock. It was getting close to the time Potter was falling asleep lately. Likely by the time he was done the massage, he would be out like a light.

"Well, you know I always liked Potions class in school. After the war, my parents hired me a tutor to train me on it. We got the garden going, and built the shed. It was nice to have something to focus on." Draco found himself talking more than he would normally, trying to distract himself from the wonderful feeling of rubbing his hands over Potter's slick skin.

It didn't really help. He loved feeling the muscles loosen under his touch, working away the tightness. It felt good to have Potter relax under his hands this way. It spoke of the trust that had grown between them.

The other part of him was simply appreciating Potter as a man. The muscles of his back, shoulders and arms. The way he groaned occasionally, the sound going right through Draco.

Potter shifted, and Draco took a step away. Rolling on to his back, Potter grinned up at him. "That felt so good. Will you do my chest too?"

His eyes were half closed, so Draco couldn't read anything by them. Did Potter seriously want more of a massage, or was there more to this? Draco found he really wanted it to be the later, but without a clearer signal, he wouldn't push for it.

"Um...sure." Draco spread the oil over him, spending a long time kneading each arm, and his shoulders. His chest was nicely defined but slim. Draco's hands smoothed down his pectorals, circling over them.

Under his palm, he felt something. Sweeping his hand away, he realized it was Potter's nipple, hardened from Draco's touch. That tiny reaction sent a thrill through Draco, and he repeated the touch with his other hand. The other nipple tightened as well.

It could just be a normal response, or it could be... Draco looked up at Potter's face. Was there some interest showing in those green eyes, some heat?

Draco's hands went lower, tracing over Potter's stomach, feeling the muscles clench under his touch. His breath caught, and his gaze caught Potter's again.

They stared at each other, the moment stretching as Draco's heart began to pound, his breathing getting faster. There was heat in Potter's eyes, Draco was thrilled to see.

But just as he was going to lean closer, get the kiss he had fantasized about so much, Potter's eyes changed. They dimmed, quickly going from bright and present in the moment, to dull and distant. His eyelids soon drooped, his body becoming slack with sleep almost instantly.

"No, no...," Draco shook Potter with hands on both shoulders. To see firsthand the power of the curse pulling Potter away like that was terrifying. Potter was limp, unable to be roused. Natural sleep wasn't like that.

In desperation, Draco did kiss him, for once hoping that Potter was still there enough to wake. To respond to the kiss, or even to be angry or offended. But, as always, Draco's firm kiss got nothing in return.

Sinking to sit in the edge of the bed, Draco almost felt like crying. The curse was so strong. Hermione was only going on flimsy theories. What if Potter was never free from it? What if it wasn't broken after a month? What if he went home, fell asleep, and never woke up again?

Picking up a towel, he wiped the oil off his hands, and then did the same to the excess that was on Potter's chest. He didn't bother rolling him over to clean his back, or try to get the pajama top on him. It would feel like working on a comatose patient to do things like that.

Instead, he tucked the covers around the man, preferring to think of him as simply sleeping. He brushed the hair back off his face, giving himself that small indulgence. "We are going to get you better, Harry Potter." He gave him another quick goodnight kiss, and left the room.

...

"OK, tell me everything you have found out." Draco poured out three large tumblers of fire whiskey. He settled across from the couple, wanting to be able to read their expressions easily.

Never would he have imagined inviting Hermione and Ron over for supper, but desperate times called for desperate measures. Potter had enjoyed the visit, showing them around the grounds and the manor after the meal. It got late, and Potter headed up to bed around the same time he'd fallen asleep the night before. Draco had given it fifteen minutes of light small talk for Potter to be fully asleep before getting into this.

Hermione looked towards the staircase, her expression guarded.

"Don't worry. He definitely can't hear you now." Draco assured her, and did a muffliato spell to make them feel even more comfortable.

She nodded. "Harry seems to be doing so well!"

Ron was nodding in agreement.

Draco arched an eyebrow. "I was with him when he fell asleep last night. Whatever this is, it's still got a firm grasp on him."

"Give it until the end of the month. This is tied to the moon, I just know it." Hermione said firmly.

Ron scoffed beside her. "About this, we are all in the dark. You were just as sure about having all those people kiss Harry as you were about the moon."

"Other people kissed Harry? Before you made me do it?" Draco's stomach felt like it dropped about ten floors.

Ron laughed as Hermione glared at him. "Yeah! At least a dozen of them! My sister, then Cho Chang, although she was harder to track down, and then that blond Ravenclaw that was a year behind us...what was her name again?"

Hermione gave him a hard elbow to the ribs, and the redhead dropped the topic. "Sometimes you have to try a few things to see what works."

"They were all women? Before me?" Draco couldn't seem to get off this.

Ron nodded. "Well, yeah, Harry's mostly dated women over the years. It was only lately he mentioned going out with blokes."

"Would you shut the hell up?" Hermione was clearly frustrated with her partner. Draco was personally loving all the information the redhead was spilling out.

Draco was mulling it all over, sipping his whiskey. "So, you tried having former girlfriends of Potter's kissing him first. You must have thought the emotional connection was important then. So why did you end up kidnaping me?"

Hermione answered before her loud-mouthed fiancé could. "Well, however you look at it, you and Harry were never indifferent to each other."

"Plus we all thought he was a bit obsessed with you, following you around the school, always watching what you were doing." Clearly the wine with dinner, and now the whiskey, was effective as _veritaserum_ to loosen Ron's tongue. Good to know.

Draco hid his grin by taking another sip of his whiskey. Had Potter truly been as aware of him? They had always exchanged hostile glares at each other in the dining hall and in classes.

Dark brown eyes were watching him intently now. "You seem to be getting along fine with Harry now. More than fine."

"Well, we are all mature adults now, right? Didn't you say something about leaving the past in the past and starting fresh? I'm simply taking your advice to heart." Draco said quickly, hoping it came off as sincere.

Her eyes were still looking at him far too closely. "No, it's more than that. I saw the way you were watching him when he was talking at dinner. You are attracted to him. Just admit it."

Draco rolled his eyes, and gathered their glasses to pour out another round, stalling for time. He set their glasses back down and sat on his own sofa, crossing his legs and trying to seem nonchalant. "Perhaps. He's an attractive man and I've been on my own too much lately. You needn't worry that I'll overstep things with him, unless you include the goodnight kisses."

"I really don't think he would mind them." Ron smirked, taking a big swallow of his drink. "There's a reason your kiss worked when everyone else's didn't, after all."

Hermione gave an exasperated sigh, and yanked the glass away from Ron, setting it on the table out of his reach. "That's enough of that. Go outside and wait for me near the gate."

Draco grinned at seeing the small witch ordering her large partner around, and saw how quickly he left.

Hermione waited until the redhead was gone before she turned back to Draco. "You have been so good with Harry, and I can tell you truly care that he gets better. You deserve to hear the whole truth."

Draco's heart started beating faster, her tone making him both nervous and excited. He braced himself, a little afraid of what she would say next. "OK."

"German folklore involving magic and apples is highly symbolic. We tested the other apples, and think they would have had other effects." Hermione explained.

"There were other apples?"

She nodded. "A yellow-gold colored one, and a green one. We think they represented wealth and youth."

"So if Potter had bit into one of those, he would have had effects around aging or money?" Draco tried to follow along.

"Perhaps. No one was willing to test them out." Hermione gave a slight grin.

Draco could understand that. "Which apple did he pick?"

"The red one. Usually symbolic of love in those old stories." Her eyes were softer now, looking at him with compassion.

"Love." Draco repeated, his heart seeming to skip a couple beats before picking up speed. He took a sip of his drink to try to settle it back down. "So that's why you thought kissing would help. Why old girlfriends?"

Hermione shrugged. "The translations from German can be interpreted various ways. One way seemed to refer to breaking the curse with first love's kiss. Ginny was his first serious girlfriend. His first love."

Draco had seen enough of Potter and the female Weasel together to have no doubt of that. It had been sickening seeing them in the corridors of Hogwarts, holding hands and talking softly with each other.

"But it didn't work. And without any other good options, we tried everyone else he had dated over the years." Hermione sighed.

"But why me?" They had been dancing around it all night.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Harry has been as private as he can be since the war, since so much makes it to the papers. Even with Ron and me, he stopped mentioning whom he was dating. It was a bit shocking when we were researching his past relationships. The past three years, there haven't been any women, only men."

Draco swallowed hard. Here was one of Harry's closest friends basically admitting that he was gay. That he'd come to the realization only recently. He thought of all the time they had spent together lately, flying on brooms, working on potions. Potter smiling and being quite comfortable standing near.

Groaning to himself, Draco rubbed his hands over his face. What had Potter thought last night when Draco gave him a massage? Had he thought it was a come-on? Had he been tempted? Did he think of Draco like that?

He was jarred out of his thoughts by Hermione patting his shoulder. "I have given you a lot to think about. Harry cares about you. I can see it. Give this a chance." With that, she left, closing the front door with a bang.

Draco filled his glass with a double, and sunk back onto the sofa. He needed it.

...

-A/N: I decided to go with posting daily since the chapters aren't that long, and because I'm crap at waiting to post stuff. Lol.

-I almost had Draco trying to get the pajama top on Harry after the spell made him sleep. I imagined some physical comedy with Harry being limp and slowly falling over while Draco tried to work the clothing on to him, with the massage oil making him slippery and even harder to manage. The idea made me chuckle, but it didn't really fit with Draco's distress over seeing Harry being pulled away by the spell. :D If this was a DVD, that scene would be in the 'Deleted Scenes'.


	5. Chapter 5

"Potter, can you bring in a bulb of garlic with the Echinacea?" Draco called out of the open doorway of the shed.

A couple minutes later, Potter came through the door, placing an armload of the purple daisies on the work counter. "And you complain I never bring your flowers anymore."

He was smirking, and with exaggerated flourish, presented Draco with the garlic bulb, his soiled hands and dirt-streaked face making the whole thing even more ridiculous.

Draco accepted the bulb with a chuckle. "Thanks, Potter." He got busy peeling it, the potent fragrance immediately overpowering the light herbal scent of the potion bubbling nearby.

The Auror leaned a hip against the counter beside Draco to watch him work. "Don't you think we should be on a first name basis now, considering what happened the other night?"

Draco's hand slipped, and he nicked his finger with his knife. "Fuck!"

"Here, let me." Potter tutted, pulling out his wand and taking Draco's hand. He quickly cleaned the wound and then healed it. "We do basic first aid daily at work. Always getting small cuts and scrapes."

"Thanks." The cut had been a good distraction, letting Draco collect himself. "So, by the 'other night', you mean the massage?" At first he had thought Potter was referring to Hermione's revelation that Potter was gay, and might have feelings for Draco.

Potter nodded, his eyes dropping to Draco's mouth and lingering there for a few heartbeats before rising to meet Draco's again. "The massage, and everything else..."

Draco smirked, stepping back. "You mean when you fell asleep on me? Do you really find my company so soporific?" Giving himself time to catch his breath.

But the git wasn't letting him off that easily. He stepped closer to Draco, crowding him against the work counter. His hand raised to the side of Draco's head as he leaned in, his eyes closing, and then it was happening. Potter kissing him, his lips warm and moving, pressing back against his own. A firm, confident kiss that had them both breathing quicker.

Draco moaned into it, his own hand moving to the back of Potter's neck to pull him closer, and then sliding up into his hair as he'd wanted to for so long. Potter mirrored the motion, his hand slipping into Draco's hair with a pleasant tug, the kiss deepening until they were pressed completely against each other.

A dinging noise eventually reached Draco, pulling him back to reality. "Oh shit! My potion is ready."

Potter nodded, pulling back a little. "You can't let it bubble a little longer? Like an hour or so?" His eyes were dark, promising so much.

"You can't know how much I wish it could. I need to cool it and bottle it right away." Draco said regretfully.

Nodding, Potter stepped back. He lifted Draco's hand, giving it a sniff. "Mmmm garlic. I will always think of our first kiss when I smell it from now on."

 _Well, not their first kiss, but their first real kiss._ Draco could only nod, taking in Potter's happy expression. "And I will always think of your face smudged with dirt, Potter."

"Harry."

Draco grinned. "Harry."

"Well, smelling that garlic has made me hungry for pasta. I'm going to cook you dinner tonight. Finish up with your potions, Draco." Harry grinned, looking about ten years younger. Happy and carefree.

Draco's poor heart gave a hard squeeze at hearing his name like that. With genuine fondness. "OK, Harry."

...

Draco showered and shaved, taking time to look his best. He took a long time standing in front of his closet. What did one wear when going on a first date in one's own house? Maybe Harry hadn't called it that exactly, but eating an intimate meal specially cooked for him certainly fit Draco's definition of one.

In the end, he went for casual but sexy. Black, tight jeans he knew made his legs look long, and his ass amazing. Black dragon-hide boots. An ice blue shirt that showed off his slim torso.

When he came downstairs, he could smell the delicious garlicky pasta sauce, his stomach rumbling in appreciation. But the dining room and kitchen were empty.

"Master Potter is outside, sir." Mino stepped near to tell him.

Draco felt relieved. "Thank you."

Going out the door from the kitchen, he went down a couple steps and around the bushes. The patio area was glowing in the soft evening darkness, a fire burning merrily in a brick fire-pit. A cozy table for two was set up under the apple tree, Harry grinning at him from one of the chairs.

He rose as Draco approached. He was dressed nicely as well, with dark blue jeans and a red long-sleeved tee. His hair seemed even more tamed than normal. His eyes scanned over Draco, and his smile widened in appreciation.

"This looks amazing, Harry. And so do you." Draco said, simply to see Harry's skin flush a little in pleasure. _Damn, that was hot._

"Perhaps I should stop while I'm ahead then. You might change your mind once you taste my cooking." Harry grinned, motioning for Draco to sit down.

Draco shook his head. "I'm impressed you know how to cook. And that you are doing it for me." He reached over to give Harry's hand a squeeze.

Harry turned his hand over, linking their fingers together. "Tupper is going to bring out the salad soon. Wine?"

Draco nodded, not objecting when Harry filled both of their glasses. One or two with dinner wouldn't hurt Harry too much.

They clinked glasses, and the rest of the meal was a blur to Draco. They enjoyed the food and wine, Draco giving Harry sincere compliments on it, their chatting relaxed and flirty. Mostly, he couldn't look away from Harry, the firelight flicking over his handsome face. Draco felt like a teenager, tongue-tied around his first crush.

Afterwards, Harry had them doing the dishes together by hand, tying aprons over their nice clothing and rolling up their sleeves. "It's only fair you know what it's like to be a muggle. I grew up cooking and cleaning for the Dursley's."

Draco flicked some soap bubbles his way. "Poor little rich boy." The papers had often mentioned Harry's fortune.

Harry nudged his shoulder with his own, passing him the soapy pasta pot for Draco to rinse. "Shut up."

"Gonna make me?" Draco taunted back playfully.

Harry's eyes were on Draco's lips. "Yup. As soon as we go upstairs."

Draco nudged Harry aside, washing the rest of the pots almost as fast as if he'd done it by magic.

"Hmmmm...eager, much?" Harry drawled, straightening from where he'd been watching Draco working.

Grabbing his hand, Draco pulled them towards the stairs. "You have no idea..."

As the door closed behind them with a click, Harry smiled. "I think I have some idea." He put his hands on Draco's hips, dragging him closer. "You look almost illegal in these jeans."

"Kinky! You like role playing being an Auror in the bedroom?" Draco smirked, getting closer and looking down into his darkening green eyes. "What are you arresting me for?"

Harry's hands slid to Draco's ass, giving it an appreciative squeeze. "Being unbelievably hot."

Their kiss was different than the one in the afternoon, immediately hot and passionate. Their dinner had primed them both for this and before long they were in bed wearing only their pants.

"Oh Merlin, keep doing that..." Harry moaned, as Draco kissed and nibbled on his neck. His hands were sliding over his chest, reacquainting himself with every inch of his hot skin. He wasn't normally into nipples, but he rubbed over Harry's again, pleased at the immediate reaction. Playing and tugging at them soon had Harry arching his back towards Draco.

Harry rolled them over, crawling over Draco to lie between his legs. They both gasped at feeling their erections rub together.

"So good, Harry..." Draco had never felt so aroused in his whole life. He was pressing up into Harry, wanting as much contact as possible. Loving his hands in his hair, yanking his head back to tease his neck.

There was a dinging sound again, and Draco sighed, dropping down against the bed with a sigh of frustration.

"What the fuck is that sound? Some cock blocker charm?" Harry growled, looking completely unimpressed.

Draco ran a hand through his hair, finger combing it into some order. "A timer charm. I set it to time my potions. It also goes off at the time you fell asleep the previous day."

Harry sat up, straightening his own hair. He gave up pretty quickly, leaving it a mess Draco found oddly hot. "And you know the exact time because?"

"You are here recovering, Harry! I ask the house elves to tell me when you fall asleep and wake up. Just to monitor it, make sure you are still progressing." And to time when to sneak in to kiss you every night.

Lying back down with a huff, Harry took Draco's hand in his. "You are afraid it would be like that other time?"

"I have a big ego, but I don't know if I could take it if you fell asleep the first time we...um..." Draco fumbled for the right word. Fuck sounded too crude. Make love too intense.

"Make the creature with two backs?" Harry smirked, clearly enjoying Draco's discomfort. "Fine. How about we just make out until then? I promise that I'll fall asleep only due to the curse."

"That creature sounds like something in the Forbidden Forest." Draco chuckled, pulling the covers up around them.

Harry cuddled closer, giving Draco a light kiss. "Stay. Sleep here."

His kisses were long and lingering, not as urgent as before but every bit as hot. Melting Draco's brain while making another part of his anatomy harder than ever. "OK..."

Harry lasted another ten minutes, his kisses tapering off, curling against Draco with such trust that his heart gave the hardest squeeze it had yet. Rubbing his hands slowly up and down Harry's bare back, he took some long, deep breaths.

 _I love Harry James Potter. I always have. I always will._

Surprisingly, he fell asleep soon after those words flowed through him, too true and bone-achingly right to face even the tiniest shred of doubt.

...

Draco woke feeling strangely warm, and something nuzzling into his hair. He didn't own a dog.

It took a moment for his sleepy brain to realize it was Harry. Spooning him from behind, kissing the back of his neck. "Mmmmmm morning."

"I woke up before you!" Harry whispered into his ear, before trailing hot kisses to those sensitive spots he had discovered the night before.

He seemed to be carrying on from last night, and Draco had absolutely no objections. Not a one. In fact, he was willing to make picket signs and campaign enthusiastically in support of the idea.

Pushing backwards, his ass hit something pleasingly hard and he rocked against it.

Harry growled against his shoulder blade. "Fuck, Draco."

"Oh, yes please..." Draco turned his head to look over his shoulder at Harry.

Yanking off their pants, Harry rolled Draco on to his back. "Are you sure? I don't want to rush this...um...you..."

Draco chuckled. "I notice you got us naked before you asked that." He arched his hips up, his eyelids flickering down as he dragged his naked cock against Harry's for the first time. "So, so good..."

Intense kissing and frotting had them both breathing hard. Harry was good at getting them both slick with lube, and Draco spread his legs wide to encourage his hand to go lower.

By the time Harry was fully inside Draco, they both knew it wouldn't last long. It was perfect anyways, sharing quick kisses and steady eye contact, hiding nothing. Harry, coming apart against Draco, was heart-crushingly beautiful.

In a panting, sticky mess afterwards, they could only chuckle. "I think we need a long soak in my huge tub, and then a lot more of this." Draco loved the relaxed weight of Harry over him.

"Oh yeah. I'm nowhere near being done with you yet." Harry agreed, rolling away to stretch and grin down at Draco.

The joking words caught Draco unawares. Harry. Done with me. The words seemed to echo around his head, and he got up to hide his face from the other man. It was like a punch to the solar plexus, a hard reminder that for Harry this was just a temporary arrangement. He'd be gone by the end of the month.

Reaching down, Draco grabbed Harry's hand. "Come on. Race you to my bathroom."

If he only had Harry a couple more weeks, he was determined to enjoy every second of it. When the curse was broken, Harry could leave and go back to his regular life. Draco could stay here, dive back into his work, with no one around to bother him.

...

-A/N: Thanks for reading this fic so far and to the many people who have left reviews. Positive feedback like that really helps me write more. :)


	6. Chapter 6

"So, for tomorrow night, I think you should go all out." Hermione explained, looking excited.

Harry squeezed Draco's hand, looking over at him. "Well, we are pretty out. You and Ron know we're gay and getting it on. Do you mean put a picture announcing that in the paper?"

She chuckled. "I meant more in the sense of having a private celebration, just the two of you. Pull out all of the stops to make it extra special."

Draco gave them both a small smile. "Like what?"

It felt like they were already doing that. Waking up together, slow morning sex. Cooking breakfast together. Working in the shed before eating lunch. Going for a 'nap' that seemed to involve more sex first. Getting in a couple few hours of work before Harry was pulling him away for dinner. Talking far into the night on a blanket on the grass, looking up at the stars. Going up the stairs hand in hand, to Draco's huge bed. It had been the best two weeks of his entire life.

Hermione took a letter out of her pocket. "I consulted with Luna Lovegood on moon ceremonies. She suggested making love in the moonlight and sleeping naked outside. You can also dance around a bonfire...also naked. She's really into the naked outdoors theme."

Draco gave a little sneer. "Sounds like a good way to get mosquito bites in sensitive places."

"I'll rub _'Itch Be Gone_ ' on every last one the next day. Come on, it sounds fun." Harry nudged an elbow against him.

Hermione's eyes were taking in their linked hands and easy teasing. She had never seen Harry so happy before, almost goofy. "How long are you awake these days, Harry?"

He looked back at his friend. "At least eighteen hours, sometimes even longer. Sometimes longer than Draco can stay awake."

"You are a fit Auror, chasing after criminals all the time. I'm a quiet potions maker, with a morning commute of crossing my yard. Is it any wonder I'm having problems keeping up with you?" Draco teased back.

Hermione was nodding at this information. "Perhaps all the extra kisses the last couple weeks are making Harry recover even faster."

"Extra kisses?" Harry gave her a funny look. "Was I getting other kisses before a couple weeks ago?"

Neither Draco or Hermione could meet his gaze, making the joking question take on a deeper significance. "Fuck. Come on. I'm sick of being handled with kid gloves. Tell me what's going on."

Hermione sighed. "Draco did it because I guilted him into it. They all did."

"All? How many people?" Harry crossed his arms over his chest, and glared at the witch.

She walked over, sinking down in front of Harry to take his hands in hers. "You almost died, Harry. The Healers, everybody, had no fucking idea how to help you. I was trying anything that had a chance of helping you."

"How many?" Harry wasn't swayed from his question.

She sighed. "Everyone you've had a relationship with. Ginny, Cho, Melinda..."

Harry pulled his hands away, getting up to look out of the window. His back was stiff, his shoulders pulled up defensively.

"They all came, dropped everything to help you. We tried everyone, but it didn't work." Hermione said softly.

Turning, Harry leaned against the wall. "Why Draco, then? He's not an ex."

Hermione got up, straightening her clothes. "You can't deny there was some kind of intense relationship between you, for years. There are intense feelings there. Somehow it worked."

"Ridiculous." Harry muttered.

Grabbing her bag, Hermione buttoned up her coat. "He kissed you, and the next day you woke up." She shrugged, walking over to give him a quick hug. "We'll talk later."

Draco watched her go, feeling abandoned. Harry was still spitting mad.

"How many times did we kiss...no, did you kiss me, before that time in the shed?"

Closing his eyes, Draco felt his heart sink. Was this it? Had their bubble burst? The good times couldn't last, and they were all over now.

"Twice before you moved here. Every night here." Draco could only tell the truth.

"Did you get off on it? Kissing me in that state? It's like necrophilia."

"Yes, unresponsive partners are really my thing." Draco snapped, feeling exhausted. "I'm going to bed."

He stopped at the bottom of the stairs, but Harry wasn't moving from his place by the window. Sighing, Draco climbed the stairs on his own. It seemed to take forever.

The huge bed seemed even more empty than it had before, and even though he was tired, he hardly slept.

...

Harry was nowhere to be found when Draco got up the next day. His bed showed signs he had slept in it, but all his possessions were gone. Had he left early, as soon as he woke up? Before the final ceremony? Draco couldn't blame him.

There was no note, and the house elves only said that he had left early.

Draco couldn't stomach eating, so had a few cups of coffee, trying to feel more alive. This felt as bad as after the war, perhaps even worse because his parents had been with him. Now he was just alone.

Was it any worse that it had happened today instead of tomorrow? That they had a fight before Harry had left? Either way, the man he loved was gone and he was alone.

...

He worked in the shed until it was too dark to see. His back and shoulders ached, from hours of pounding albacore shells into a fine powder. Another tiresome job that couldn't be done magically. It was mindless and tired him out.

He had a long soak in his tub, not bothering to turn on the lights. He knew every part of the manor and could navigate it blindfolded.

He slipped down in the water, holding his breath, the world blissfully dark and silent except for the slow thump of his heart.

Bright lights flashed against his eyelids, and for a second he thought it was something that happened when you needed oxygen. But they continued, and he broke above the surface of the water with a gasp.

The flashing colored lights were coming from outside, accompanied by booming noises and whistles. Was he under attack?

Jumping out of the tub, he threw on his teal silk robe, slicking his dripping hair off of his face as he ran down the steps.

Outside the manor, heart pounding practically out of his chest, he jumped at every flash and bang of noise. It took a minute to realize they were fireworks, streaking across the dark sky in colorful blazes of every color. It took another minute to figure out they were coming from behind the house.

Racing around to the back of the huge building, he could see a trail of lanterns on the ground. He followed them, not really that surprised now that Harry Fucking Potter was standing at the end of it.

There was a truly massive bonfire, the flames licking high into the dark sky, almost as bright as the full moon that was directly above it. Potter was moving around the fire, seeming to be having some kind of seizure. He writhed and twisted in the firelight, his bare skin apparently covered in oil, reflecting the golden light over the planes and curves of his body.

The fireworks had ceased going off, and Draco's ears stopped ringing eventually. He started to hear the beat of a drum, like a heartbeat, and realized Harry was moving to its rhythm. Was he entranced? Forced to move against his will by unseen forces, fighting against it?

As Draco cautiously moved closer, his wand out and ready, he scanned over the whole area. The manor had strong wards, making it almost impossible for unknown people to get through.

"Draco! Finally! Get over here!"

Draco rushed to Harry, relieved to hear his voice. "Are you OK? Can you tell me what happened?"

"Get naked and dance with me. There's lots of honeysuckle body butter left."

Draco almost dropped his wand. "You are dancing? You aren't being attacked?"

Harry just chuckled, shaking his ass at Draco before attempting to do some shoulder shimmies. It looked awkward and a little painful.

"It's the moon celebration, stupid. We need to break this blasted curse, no matter what it takes." Harry said, doing some strange hops on one foot that almost had him falling into the bonfire.

Fuck. He better get in there before Harry really hurt himself. Sighing, he slipped off his robe and threw it to the side.

Harry can-canned past, shoving a heavy jar into his hands.

Draco opened it, the scent of honeysuckle almost overwhelming. Cringing, he scooped out the thick, creamy substance, rubbing it quickly over his skin. It took many scoops to get as shiny as Harry.

Harry was twirling with some kind of random jumping jack motion, so Draco moved as close as he could. His body immediately moved to the heavy drumbeat, the heat from the fire and his dancing making sweat soon mix with the body butter slathered everywhere. He gave up trying to dance normally, instead hopping about with his arms outstretched, keeping close to Harry to hopefully catch him if he lost his balance.

Suddenly, the drumbeats stopped, his heartbeat seeming to carry them on in his chest. He felt strangely euphoric from the dancing and the heat of the fire. Underneath that, he could feel the crackle of energy surrounding them. Thrumming.

Harry's eyes seemed like huge green pools in the flickering light of the fire. His glasses must be wherever his clothes were. He was solemn as he took Draco's hand, leading him to a round platform a few feet away, draped with many colors of fabric.

Harry gave Draco a hard shove, making him fall backwards on to the platform. It was soft and bouncy, and he sunk into it. Harry crawled over him, sliding their slick bodies fully against each other. "I'm going to fuck you now, so hard." Harry growled, staring down at Draco.

"Um...OK." This whole situation was a bit nuts, but the hard cock nudging against his own made it a little hard to think.

Harry _accio'd_ the body butter to them, coating Draco generously and working his fingers into him until Draco was a begging mess. Harry had learned exactly how to best tease Draco's prostate with his fingers.

"Fuck me...please, please...Harry...". Draco arched up into his lover's touch.

"Say my full name." Harry commanded.

Harry seemed to be in a dominant mood. If it got him fucked, Draco was happy to play along. "Harry James Potter."

"Louder!" Harry ordered, with a twist of his fingers that had Draco shaking with need.

"Harry James Potter!"

His obedience meant more body butter being slicked along his erection. "What's your name?"

"Draco Lucius Malfoy!" He figured he might as well shout all his answers from now on, to save time.

"And what do you want me to do?"

"Fuck me! Fuck me!"

Harry rolled them over, lying on his back. "Come, Draco, and ride my cock. Let me watch you."

Exhausted but too horny to care, Draco crawled over Harry. Thanks to the thorough prep, he sunk right down onto Harry, taking him right to the base. He started moving fast, too aroused to take his time.

Harry's eyes seemed a little unfocused without his glasses, running over his body and staring at the full moon right above them. "Beautiful...beautiful...beautiful..."h

Somehow, it all blended together. The light from the moon and the fire and the stars. The smell of the honeysuckle, sweat and smoke. The thump of his heart and their fast breathing, the wind in the trees. The feel of Harry's hands on his skin, the way their bodies moved together as one, undulating like waves against a shore. Perfectly in sync.

Harry sat up, holding Draco tight, both shuddering through powerful orgasms. Mouths touching, panting, gasping. Glancing kisses against lips, cheeks, chins.

They fell limply on to their sides. Harry's eyes held Draco's, and then he kissed him slowly, thoroughly. His hands went down to the cum on their skin, rubbing it over both of them. Mixing it with the sweat and honeysuckle. It soothed Draco, his heart slowing, and felt strangely at peace. The thrum of magic, of energy, had crashed over them, and was now pulling back like the tide.

...

A light morning rain awoke them, and Harry gathered Draco close as they ran into the house. It was barely dawn, the fire and lanterns burnt out. A soft light made the world look delicate and fresh. New.

They helped each other up the stairs, filling the tub with the hottest water and best bubble bath. They scrubbed each other clean, shampooing their hair, and then just lying still to let the water unknot every muscle.

By the time they made it into the bed, the house elves had left them a tray of fruit, cheese and tea sweetened with honey. They gobbled it up, crawling beneath the fluffy covers with moans of appreciation.

...

-A/N: Thanks again for reading!


	7. Chapter 7

Draco opened his eyes, feeling disoriented. He was in his bed, but something was different.

His eyes were drawn to his left. Messy dark hair covered the other pillow, a patch of bare skin visible at the base of his neck. Draco pressed his lips there, almost without thinking.

Harry rolled over, his lips curved into a small, shy smile. "Good morning."

Drawing him closer, Draco kissed him, slow and sweet. Unrushed. Savoring the way Harry returned the kisses.

He pulled back. "Last night...did all that really happen?" It just seemed too crazy. He was almost afraid to question it too closely. Whatever had happened, the end result was Harry in his bed kissing him that way.

Harry chuckled. "The curse breaking ceremony? Yup."

"Did the house elves slip me a potion in my drink or something? It all seems a bit fuzzy to me."

Clearly amused, Harry grabbed his glasses from the side table to see Draco better. "Tell me what you remember. I'll tell you if you get anything wrong."

"Fireworks?"

"Well, of course. Hermione had mentioned needing to go 'all out'. I thought they fit the bill quite well."

"It certainly started things off with a bang," Draco said dryly. "The bonfire and the honeysuckle stuff?"

Harry gave a little shrug. "I left in the morning still a bit angry with you and Hermione. So I went to have it out with her. We talked everything over. I agreed to do the ceremony as best we could."

"So bonfires are essential?"

"We checked through many books, and thought it couldn't hurt. Luna gave us a lot of suggestions too. She supplied the body butter." Harry was trying to keep a straight face.

"Were you in pain? You kept moving so weird, I was afraid you'd hurt yourself."

Harry sighed. "I was dancing! Naked, uninhibited dancing around a bonfire was stressed as important."

"Was it, really?"

Pressing his lips tight together, Harry glared at Draco a little. "Look, didn't you feel it? The energy? It was pulsating all around us and got stronger and stronger. It was much easier to feed it when you got naked and moved."

Draco took a deep breath, thinking back on the night. The energy had been there, almost like their regular low grade awareness of each other, but cranked up a thousand times. The energy had hummed and pulsated, dancing over their skin and through them. "Yeah, OK. I felt that."

"It worked. I feel like myself again. I slept normally last night and again this morning." Happy grinned widely.

Draco felt his heart skip a beat at that. "So, what now?"

"I've thinking pancakes and bacon. I'm so hungry."

There was a small knock on the door, and the house elf waited for Draco's command before opening the door. "Ms. Granger and Mr. Weasley have arrived, sir. Inquiring after Mr. Potter."

Draco rolled his eyes. "Tell them we will down shortly."

Once Mino was gone, Draco gave Harry one last, long kiss. "We will continue this later, once they have left." He wasn't sure if he meant the conversation or the slow kisses. Probably mostly the latter.

Crawling out of bed, they both stretched before slipping on the robes. Their hair was a mess from sleeping on it wet. Draco finger combed his silky strands into a semblance of order, Harry didn't even bother with his.

Grabbing Draco's hand, Harry ran with him down the stairs and into the living room.

Ron and Hermione grinned at seeing Harry looking so energetic and happy. They came forward, both giving him a hard hug, and then surprisingly hugging Draco tightly too.

"Thank you, Draco. I think the curse is completely gone now." She pulled out her wand, using it to scan over Harry. Ron had his out too, doing his own checks for his own piece of mind.

Hermione grabbed Draco's wrist tightly, with a slight gleam in her eye, and apparated them before he could react.

"Shit! You have to stop doing that!" Draco growled at her, yanking his arm away and looking around. It was the same upstairs hallway she had taken him to the first time.

Ron appeared with Harry a second later, looking a little irked as well.

Hermione just grinned widely at them both. "Now that the curse is broken, it's time to celebrate. All the people who came to visit you when you were under are here, and it's only right they get to see you hale and hearty again."

"So, this is a surprise party...for me?" Harry grinned slowly, as he realized there were sounds of music and people talking coming from the main floor.

Ron nodded. "Just go into the guest bedroom and get dressed. We bought you some clothes. Come down when you are ready."

With that, Hermione and Ron went downstairs to their guests, leaving Draco and Harry alone.

Draco just arched an eyebrow towards Harry. "Well, shall we?" He could see how quietly pleased Harry was by this gesture by his closest friends, so didn't want to make things uncomfortable by leaving himself.

Downstairs were people Draco hadn't seen for years. Many would probably rather spit in his eye than shake his hand. Had Hermione or Ron told them that Harry and he were ...what? Involved? Intimate? Would that make things even more uncomfortable for them?

It was probably best if they kept their 'relationship' to themselves for now. Draco would go to this party but bring as little attention to himself as possible. Let Harry be the center of their attention, as it should be. He's the one who had almost died and was back to his old self now.

Harry's eyes widened a little at Draco's acceptance of this surprise gathering, but then he nodded, enable to hide the spark of excitement in his eyes.

The bedroom had clothes for them to change into and the bathroom some grooming materials to fix their hair. Draco tugged at the simple black robe he wore, the fit good enough. Harry was wearing some dark jeans of Ron's, with the bottoms folded up a little, paired with a dark green hoodie.

Harry took Draco's hand, tugging him closer to give him a soft kiss. "Are you sure this is OK?"

Draco was touched at the concern in Harry's eyes, and that he understood how hard this was going to be for him. He squeezed his hand back, nodding even though he already felt nervous. This was important for Harry.

They walked down the stairs, Harry still holding his hand, but Draco let go when they got to the bottom. "Go on. They are all waiting for you." He didn't want Harry's well deserved attention for his recovery be spoiled by Draco's presence. He gave Harry a little push forward, while stepping back towards a wall himself.

There was a cheer as Harry got noticed by the crowd, pulling him into that circle to be hugged and fawned over. Everyone was smiling broadly, saying how great he looked. Many had happy tears in their eyes, with Harry looking touched by their concern.

Draco watched from the sidelines, only a couple people even noticing him there and getting a cool response. He sighed, trying to tell himself that it was better when they simply gave him the cold shoulder than resorted to insults or physical attacks.

It was easier to just watch Harry, seeing how everyone just loved him. What would it feel like, having that many friends? Draco couldn't help noticing the ones that hugged Harry a little too long. Where those some of his former relationships, people he had dated? The ones whose kisses hadn't worked on Harry?

Hermione pushed through the crowd, handing Harry a glass of champagne. "Thanks to everyone for coming here tonight to help us celebrate Harry's recovery. It's hard to believe a month ago he was at death's door, with almost no hope in sight. Let's toast to his good health."

Everyone held their drinks up, making the toast and taking a sip. Ron had appeared at Draco's side, passing him a glass of champagne and clinking glasses with him.

"There is someone here we really have to thank for being a key to Harry being here today. Draco Malfoy!" Hermione called out with a wide smile, and turning towards him. She waved for him to step forward.

Draco was frozen on the spot as dozens of heads turned his way. Staring at him, silently judging him. The last time he'd seen many of these people was at his trial, and knew many of them thought he should have served time like his father had.

Ron was pushing him through the crowd, bringing him to his fiancée's side. Hermione grabbed his hand, tugging him close to give him a hard hug. Right in front of everyone.

"This man saved Harry, but also saved me from losing my job. We had taken so much time off work to be with Harry, that when he started looking better, Draco volunteered to let Harry recover at Malfoy Manor." Ron added, smiling at him and patting him on the back. Draco was at a loss for words, feeling moved by it all.

"Ron and Hermione did drop everything to get me over the worst." Harry said, his warm glance going to his closest friends. "And thanks to everyone who visited me when I was 'sleeping'. I might not have been aware you were there, but you also gave my friends support when they needed it." His green eyes scanned over the crowd, clearly feeling emotional at seeing so many friends at the party.

Harry took Draco's hand, pulling him to his side. Draco tried to resist, shooting Harry a glare and giving a small shake to his head, but the Auror wasn't happy until his arm was around Draco's waist. "This man has been there for me every day this past month, letting me stay in his beautiful home, seeing to my every need. When I got bored, he took time away from his work to fly with me, or gave me easy jobs so I could feel useful. So, let's toast Draco Malfoy!"

Harry, Ron and Hermione immediately held their half-full glasses up high. Other people joined them, like Luna, the Weasleys, and their Auror friends. The rest of the crowd looked stunned at Harry's impromptu speech, and seeing them standing so close together. Slowly, more and more of them were lifting their glasses as well.

Harry drank the rest of his champagne, and then gave Draco a tight hug. "Thank you." The soft words were for his ears only, and Draco's heart gave a hard squeeze in response.

Little speeches over, the party got into full swing. The music went louder and drinks flowing freely. Harry was soon pulled away, continuing to visit with all his own friends.

Draco found people looking at him differently now, giving him small nods of acknowledgment and grudging respect.

"So, what have you been doing all these years? I've hardly seen you around and had wondered if you moved abroad." Neville Longbottom had stepped closer, surprisingly tall and fit these days.

Draco finished off his drink since his mouth felt incredibly dry. "Oh, I...um... have a workshop at home and brew potions. How about you?"

"I teach Herbology at Hogwarts now." Neville said with a chuckle.

"Really? Perhaps you could help me with a problem I've been having lately. My mandrake roots have been coming out a bit soft." Draco explained, accepting a glass of wine from Ron when he passed by.

Neville grinned. "Yes, that's a common problem. It's likely too wet for them and they are rotting. Try an area that drains better with lots of sun."

That sparked other questions, and Draco hardly noticed how long they had been chatting, with other people joining them to discuss their gardens and asking Draco about his potions.

"I've gotten quite good at potions for allergies. One of my house elves was always sneezing and having the worst runny eyes due to hay fever. He hardly shows any symptoms now." Draco told a Hufflepuff girl whose name he couldn't remember. "Send me an owl with your address and I'll send you a bottle of my latest formulation."

Eventually, he escaped to go to the washroom and slipped out the back door of the house afterwards. He just needed a moment alone somewhere quiet.

Unfortunately, Ron was sitting on a chair nearby, sipping a glass of fire whiskey. He motioned for Draco to join him. "I see you aren't really into big parties either."

Draco shrugged as he sat down. "I've been on my own so long, it feels odd to be surrounded with people now. A bit overwhelming."

"Well, you looked comfortable. You were certainly talking with enough people!" Ron chuckled.

Draco rolled his eyes at the redhead. "Thanks to you three making speeches about how much I did for Harry. He simply stayed in my large house with the house elves doing everything for him. I hardly even saw him except for those damn goodnight kisses."

"I never did understand why you did that." Ron sat up straighter, giving Draco a funny look.

Draco scowled back at him, crossing his arms tightly over his chest. "What choice did I have except do that? After Hermione told me he was getting worse after he woke up?"

Ron scoffed, taking another big sip of his fire whiskey. "That's ridiculous. He was awake about fifteen minutes longer every day. Steadily improving. He was up almost five hours on the day you came for tea..."

Draco simply saw red. Ron babbled on, his words fading into the background. That fucking witch! Guilting Draco into doing things, lying to him outright, convincing him that Harry needed to stay close to him for a month. Was any of it true?

"Hey, did you really think Harry needed you to kiss him every day to get better?" Ron was chuckling, noticing how silent Draco had been. "Oh Merlin, this is so good! She out-snuck a Slytherin!" The fire whiskey was making him slur a little as he said that.

With a huff, Draco launched himself from his chair. He stomped into the house, scanning over to the crowd until he saw the witch heading into the kitchen with a handful of empty butter-beer bottles. He followed her into the small room, thankful that no one else was inside.

"How could you lie to my face like that, time after time?" Draco hissed, standing right in front of the witch.

She shrugged, one corner of her mouth lifting in a bit of a smirk. "What lie? Nobody knew exactly what the curse involved."

"Ron said Harry was awake a little longer each day after he woke up. You definitely lied to me about that." Draco glared at her, daring her to deny it.

Hermione broke the stare first, her face reddening a little as she looked off to the side. "OK, OK...maybe I _exaggerated_ things a little, but it was for both of your sakes."

"Yeah right!" Draco's voice was getting louder in frustration. "You wanted a nice convalescence home for Harry while you and Ron went back to your normal lives. I was a convenient nursemaid!"

Hermione straightened up, glaring right back at Draco. "Oh Merlin, you know it was more than that. You, and only you, were the one whose kiss woke him up. You damn fools love each other and are too stupid to admit it."

"Go back to reading your fairy tales." Draco sneered.

She rolled her eyes. "Really? Sure, I pushed you two together, hoping that after being together a month you would figure things out. Are you denying that you and Harry...?"

She left off the last word suggestively, and Draco took a step away. "Put any two people together in a situation like that, and they are likely to turn to each other out of sheer convenience. Opportunity. Hormones." He shrugged. "It doesn't mean anything. Harry's cured now and he'll move back to his own place. Who knows when I'll see him again."

"Oh no, that will screw things up completely! You have to be together for every day of the honeymoon." Luna said, entering the kitchen. She must have just heard the last part of what Draco said. She looked pretty in a long, lilac colored dress, her blond hair elaborately braided.

"Honeymoon!" Draco repeated back, looking between Luna and Hermione.

The dark haired witch seemed uncomfortable. "The ceremony you two performed last night had most of the elements of a Moonist wedding ceremony. It's an ancient religion, tied closely to the moon and nature, much like the curse on that apple. You had to raise the energy and prove your bond under a full moon to truly break the bond the curse had on Harry."

Draco felt a bit shaken, grabbing hold of the counter nearby to stabilize myself. "So, Harry and I aren't married then?"

The sound of glass breaking had them all turning around. Harry stood in the doorway to the kitchen, staring at them, a broken bottle at his feet. "We aren't, are we?"

Hermione grabbed her wand, murmuring ' _Evanesco'_ to vanish the glass away. "No, no...of course not. We just based the ceremony on that to break the curse." She put a comforting arm around Harry, drawing him towards Luna and Draco. Her concern over him was still very evident.

"Um...I think there was some confusion then." Luna said, giving an apologetic smile. "I had the impression you thought only a Moonist bonding would break the curse."

Hermione ran her fingers through her hair. "Yes, something powerful. Bonding but not a marriage."

Luna shook her head. "There really isn't a difference to Moonists. What Harry and Draco did is a Moonist marriage."

Draco let out a groan, needing to sit down now. He felt a headache coming on as well. This was just all spinning out of control. He really should have declined Hermione's first ridiculous request and stayed happily in his own home alone.

Hermione and Luna were debating over Moonist theology and practices, Hermione basing her arguments on the research she had done. Luna was countering with information from her own family, many who still followed that ancient religion. Draco just closed his eyes tight and tried to tune them out.

Something cold nudged against his hand, and Draco opened his eyes. It was Harry, looking down at him with concerned eyes. He was offering Draco a cold beer, already drinking one himself.

Draco accepted it, taking a long sip and savoring the way the icy, slightly bitter ale slid down his throat. He felt his tension unwinding a little, his headache easing.

Harry sat in the chair next to his, leaning closer to talk with Draco privately. "Look, I know this is a mess and none of it's your fault. You've done enough already for me. I'll move back to Grimmauld place tonight. Give you back your peace and quiet."

Draco's heart clenched at the thought of Harry leaving, but he kept his expression as neutral as he could. "If you think that's for the best..."

"Oh, you can't do that." Luna said almost at the same time, overhearing them. "You have to sleep in the same bed until the end of the honeymoon."

"Oh, for Merlin's sake, what now?" Draco groaned.

Harry bit his lip, his eyes troubled as he looked between Luna and Draco. "Is that really necessary? How long is the honeymoon period anyways?"

"Another cycle of the moon. Another month. Then you can be apart, except for full moon nights, of course." Luna happily supplied, seeming oblivious to the men's distress. "It's a lot like the ancient hand fasting traditions. The couple make the bond themselves, and after a year, they can choose to stay together or separate, with no bad feelings between them."

Hermione nodded as she took it all in, her mind working through a dozen possibilities. "What would happen if they don't follow those traditions for the year? If they were apart during the honeymoon?"

Luna looked sad at the thought, her large eyes taking in each of the men in turn. "The bond would break. It's very dishonorable with Moonists to do that. You could never enter into another Moonist union."

"Yes, but would it harm Harry in any way? Any _real_ way?" Hermione asked, obviously frustrated by Luna's answers but trying to keep calm.

She shrugged. "The magic they brought together would dissipate. In this scenario, it would leave a void. That could be a weak spot in their defenses."

Hermione nodded. "So, it's possible the curse could gain power in Harry again?"

"I don't really know about the curse." Luna said softly.

Harry sighed. "So, basically we don't really know what's going on, but Draco and I are married. And to prevent me from falling back into a possibly fatal coma, we have to stay married one year."

"Look, you only have to live together one more month, and then see each other once a month for the rest of the year." Hermione said softly. "I think if you separated then, it wouldn't leave the magical void Luna mentioned."

 _Just a huge void in my heart._ Draco sighed to himself, and hoisted himself to his feet. "Well, come on, husband, let's go home to our marital bed."

Harry made quick goodbyes to the people of the party, his manner much more subdued. They changed back into their own robes before apparating back to the manor.

Neither said a word as they went up the stairs, getting ready to turn in. Draco sat on the edge of the bed, feeling emotionally exhausted.

"Draco," Harry started, standing in front of him, his face tense, "you have already done so much for me, and it's not fair to keep pushing you for more. I'll work with Hermione to find another solution."

"Get in the damn bed, Harry." Draco growled, his patience at an end. He tore off his own robe, climbing naked under the sheets. They had been together in this bed too much to go back to false modesty now. "It's just another month, and ten full moons after that. I think we can get through it without killing each other."

"It's too much...," Harry said in the darkness from his side of the bed. The moon was still mostly full, moonlight giving the room a faint silvery glow.

Draco gave an impatient huff, sitting up and twisting around to be able to see Harry. "I'm tired of the lies, speculation and miscommunications around everything. Let's be straight with each other. Do you mind living here with me another month? Find me repugnant?"

Harry's mouth quirked into a small smile. "No, quite the opposite, in fact."

"Good. I feel the same. I actually like having you around here, so stop blathering on about giving me back my fucking peace and quiet." Draco snapped, a bit irked at the amused twinkle in Harry's eyes. "I know I'll be a mess when the year is over but that's nothing if it means you are safe from that bloody curse."

Harry sat upright at that, the sheet sliding down to his waist. "You'll be a mess...? Why?"

Draco took a deep inhale, and let it out slowly. He had just promised to be straight with Harry, or this would never work. "Because I have feelings for you, OK? Because if I feel like this after living with you a month, what will I be like after a year?" His head dropped forward, not wanting to see Harry looking at him with pity. His hair feel forward, hiding his face a little, and for that he felt grateful.

Harry's hand went under his chin, lifting his face. His other pushed his hair back, looking searching at Draco. "You have...feelings? For me?"

Draco's heart was pounding hard at the way Harry was looking at him, his eyes so green. "I fucking love you, OK? I probably have forever. I know you don't return my-"

His words were cut off by Harry's mouth on his, a hard, frantic kiss that was so good Draco could only moan and kiss back. It went on and on, one kiss becoming another, until they feel back against the bed, arms still around each other. Draco felt a bit dizzy.

Harry crawled over him, looking down at him fondly. "You stupid fool. Only your kiss brought me back from death, when only the kiss from someone I loved could do that."

"Hermione told me about that. The curse was supposed to be broken by a 'love's first kiss', but Ginny kissing you did nothing. I know you loved her, back in school." Draco argued back, but not too hard. He was distracted by having Harry so close, and the affectionate way he was looking down at him.

Harry shrugged. "I talked about it with Hermione too, yesterday. The German can be translated to mean slightly different things. I think 'first love's kiss' is more accurate. That's why Ginny's kiss didn't work. She wasn't my first love, you were."

Draco's heart was thumping hard at hearing that, and he pulled Harry back down. Their kisses were hot, hands greedily touching everywhere.

"Really, you loved me back then?" Draco panted breathlessly against Harry's ear, nibbling along his neck.

Harry nodded, slotting his leg between Draco's for better contact. "Yes, but I didn't really understand it at the time. I just obsessively watched you and secretly wanked off to fantasies of being in the shower with you."

Draco chuckled. "Me too. Fuck, all the time we wasted..."

"We better start making up for it now." Harry murmured as he kissed down Draco's chest.

...

A/N: And they lived happily ever after...or did they? ;)  
Thanks for reading & for the reviews. I'm happy to have such a nice response to my first Drarry story.  
I will write an epilogue, so keep an eye out for that


	8. Epilogue

Epilogue

...

"Mmmmmmm...this is so good, Mino." Harry moaned after the first bite of a cinnamon bun fresh from the oven.

The house elf looked quietly pleased at the compliment, pouring Harry some more coffee before ducking back into the kitchen.

Draco had a similarly decadent breakfast, a Nutella crepe with a big dollop of whip cream. "If we get to eat like this the whole honeymoon, I might just stick around."

"At least we are working off the calories every night." Harry joked back.

They were a week into their honeymoon, and everything was going well so far. Harry was easing back into work, going in for half-days and catching up on paperwork. Draco found he could feel when Harry was away, the Manor seeming strangely empty, and things didn't feel right until his husband was home. He greeted Harry with enthusiastic kisses, often working off his Auror robes right in the front hallway, dragging Harry over to a sofa. Not even making it up the stairs. The house elves had learned to keep to their wing of the house as much as possible when Harry was home.

Tupper approached. "A package for Mr. Potter, sir."

Harry took the small box and thanked the house elf. He unwrapped it, opening the box and stared in shock at the contents. After a moment, he grabbed the outer wrapping, looking at it closely.

Draco set down his coffee cup. "Another wedding gift? You know, we really should get registered so you get the stuff you need for Grimmauld Place."

Even though they hadn't had a public ceremony or announced it, word had spread somehow. Perhaps some people had overheard them discussing everything in the kitchen of that party. Gossip spread fast. Wedding gifts had been trickling in almost every day.

Harry shook his head, and lifted an object from the box to show Draco. It was a small glass cube, beautifully displaying a deep red apple with a bite taken out of it. The exposed inner part of the apple was still bright white, the apple still appearing fresh.

"Who the hell sent you that? It's 'the' apple, isn't it?" Draco got out, a spike of pure dread going through him.

After all they had gone through, was that only the initial phase of some larger evil plan? Was this going to harm them somehow even more?

Harry nodded. "It's definitely the apple. The wrapping has a return address in...Austria."

Draco's stomach felt like it dropped ten feet. "42 Bösehexe Strasse?"

"How did you know that?" Harry gasped.

Luckily, they were fully dressed. Draco put the cube back into the box, and shoved everything into the roomy pocket of his robe. Grabbing his wand, he apparated them to the nearest train station.

...

A few hours later, they were standing in front of 42 Bösehexe Strasse. Draco had paid extra to arrange for the most direct port key connections. He used the large ornate knocker to bang hard on the thick wooden door.

Harry was looking around the elegant Austrian neighborhood, looking a little nervous. "What if they aren't home?"

Draco sighed. "They are home."

The door was answered by a very cheerful house elf wearing a smart navy outfit. The tunic had an elaborate M stitched on the right sleeve in gold. "Master Draco. Please come in. Welcome, Mr. Potter."

"Is my mother at home, Gorkey?" Draco drawled, stepping through the doorway.

The house elf nodded, leading them to a beautiful garden conservatory, with glass walls and dome ceiling letting in the afternoon light. The large room was full of greenery and lush flowers. Water fountains tinkled, small birds travelled between the indoor trees.

Within a few minutes, they were sipping tea. Harry still found himself tense, although the drink was most welcome. He was a bit tired after the journey.

Draco set his cup down, and stood up. An older woman rushed straight to Draco, hugging him tight. "Darling."

She pulled back, and took Harry in, standing beside Draco. He was looking at her just as closely. Her hair had gone almost white, but she wore it in a style similar to how she had before, shoulder length and with a fringe that stopped above her dark eyebrows. Her eyes were as dark and direct as ever. Her makeup was flawless, with bold red lipstick, and she wore well-tailored dark grey robes.

"Harry Potter. It is good to see you after so long." She finally said, motioning for him to sit down.

He took her invitation, sitting accidentally a little closer to Draco than he intended to on the wicker loveseat. "Hello, Mrs. Malfoy."

"Call me Narcissa." She smiled then, looking between Draco and Harry. "What brings you two for such a lovely surprise visit?"

Draco scoffed. "You know very well what." He reached into his pocket, and pulled out the box. "We got your package today."

"And you are here to return it to me? Certainly, if it's not to your taste, I can find a more suitable wedding gift." Her grin reminded Harry a little of the Cheshire Cat.

Draco jumped up, tearing the cube out of the box to hold it right up to her face. "You sent Harry this cursed apple. Why? Why would you do such a horrible thing to him?"

She calmly took the glass cube from his hand, and set it gently on the coffee table. "I actually sent Harry three magic apples."

The fight went out of Draco with her admission. He sunk down again. "You still haven't said why."

"I'm getting to that." She poured herself a cup of tea, adding sugar and then taking a sip. "Harry, do you know what each of the apples were for?"

Harry swallowed before he could get the words out. "Um...the experts who looked at them think the green one was for youth, the gold one for money, and the red one...for love."

"Very good." Narcissa smiled at him before turning back to her son. "The magic of the apples can give the person what they deeply want, and Harry chose love."

"He was almost dead for weeks after biting into that damn thing, Mother." Draco could all too clearly remember Harry on the bed, so still and so absent. A chill ran through him at the memory.

Narcissa shrugged. "Difficult roads often lead to beautiful destinations. Here he sits, in love and married."

Before Draco could go off on another rant, Harry held up his hand. "What would have happened if I'd eaten the other apples?"

Narissa's eyes gleamed at the question. "This type of ancient magic isn't that predictable. I think the gold one would have affected your finances. The green one might have made you feel younger."

Harry sometimes felt much older than he was, having faced so much danger at a young age. But he had missed out on other things during that time. "I guess the red apple was the right one for me."

She shook her head, her eyes narrowing. "You aren't at all tempted by being rich?" She looked down at his ordinary clothes and boots derisively.

Harry scoffed. "I already have money. Lots of money."

She shrugged one shoulder elegantly. "Many people can never feel rich enough. They always want more."

Draco leaned forward. "But why did you send them to him in the first place? You haven't seen him in ten years and don't even live in England anymore."

"For you, of course." Narcissa picked up a piece of shortbread, calmly taking a small bite. "You were content to live the rest of your days shut up in that empty manor house, dabbling half-heartedly in making potions for barely enough to get by. That isn't living, that's just existing. I couldn't bear it anymore."

"So you sent Harry magic apples?" Draco thought he could figure out his mother's schemes, but this one had him lost and confused. Maybe his feelings for Harry made him unable to see the bigger picture.

She poured them all another cup of tea. "You don't pay attention to much in the outside world anymore, but I knew if something serious happened to Harry, you would get involved in it."

He was about to argue more when the cheerful house elf appeared, and called her away on an urgent manner.

Harry took Draco's hand. "In a twisted way, it makes sense. Things that happen to me usually end up in the newspapers, and you'd hear about it eventually."

"Hmmmm probably." Draco leaned closer to kiss Harry, and it led to a few more.

Narcissa returned, and they belatedly sprung apart, looking embarrassed. She just gave them a fond smile. "So, any other questions about the apples? I'm sure you want to tidy up before supper."

"What would have happened if Draco hadn't kissed me? Would I have stayed in that coma forever?" Harry had nightmares about it, a horrible state you can never escape.

The elegant woman shook her head. "No, it's tied to moon magic. You would have woken up after a month."

"And there are no lingering effects now? No curse remains? If Draco and I have a fight, the curse won't force us back together somehow?" Harry leaned towards Narcissa, his gaze intent.

Narcissa shook her head. "No. You remain together on your own free will. The apple was just a trigger. I knew people who loved you couldn't stay away if you were about to die."

Draco scoffed, thinking off all the people at the party. "Many, many people came to be with Harry."

Harry reached over to take his hand. "But I only woke up for you."

Narcissa smiled to herself on seeing that, looking far too proud of herself. "You'll be staying for the night, of course. Gorkey has already prepared the guest suite for you."

Sighing, Draco stood up, pulling Harry with him. "Fine." They followed the cheerful house elf to the ornate room.

The house wasn't as big as the Manor, but still had plenty of room for them to entertain elegantly.

"Please let me know if you need anything else." Gorkey gave a friendly smile, before leaving them

Harry looked around the guest bedroom, just shaking his head. A couple months ago, he had been living a regular life as a single man, going to work as an Auror. Now, he was married and spending the night at his new in-laws' house. Still recovering from the cursed apple his mother-in-law had sent him. Would he ever have a normal life?

"I've never seen a cheerful house elf like Gorkey before." Harry commented, stripping down to his underwear and performing a cleansing spell on his clothes to freshen them up.

Draco was doing the same with his clothing. "Gorkey has always been like that, even before the House Elf Emancipation Act was passed. He's great at organizing their social calendar and making guests feel welcome."

Harry could see how the Malfoy's would value that, having always been prominent in the wizarding communities they lived in. "So, he used to be at the manor?"

"Yes. All our house elves have been with the Malfoys for generations. When they moved away, they took four with them, and I kept Mino and Tupper." Draco walked over to the ensuite bathroom and started filling the tub.

Trying not to smirk, Harry gathered up the folded towels to carry them into the bathroom. "So, you had seven house elves, when you include Dobby? That's a lot of little men running around." He tried to picture what it had been like in the Manor when Draco was growing up, and just ended chuckling to himself.

Draco took off his underwear and stepped into the bubble bath. He eased down with a sigh, and motioned for Harry to get in. "You find the whole thing amusing, don't you? They all had their own jobs, depending on their personality. There's a quiet, shy one that serves as my mother's personal maid. My father's valet is the moodiest house elf I've ever seen, but he seems to like that. There's one that has very good healing abilities, so I insisted that he stay with my parents when they left. They are getting older, and it's comforting to know he's taking care of them."

Stepping into the hot bath, Harry arranged himself to be facing Draco. The water was almost too hot, but he felt it relaxing the tension he had unconsciously been carrying since receiving the package. "Why did you keep Mino and Tupper?"

"Mino has always had bad allergies, and when I started at Hogwarts, I played around with potions to help him. He was always willing to try them, and over the years, we've gotten to a formula that represses most of his symptoms and doesn't make him drowsy." Draco picked up a sponge, and lathered it up with some soap. He picked up Harry's foot, holding it out of the water to wash slowly. "Tupper is the oldest of our house elves, and basically semi-retired. He rests a lot. He could never keep up with my parents' busy lifestyle now. He's happier staying with me."

Harry relaxed under Draco's ministrations, enjoying the feel of the soapy sponge travelling over his lower leg. "Why did Gorkey have such a fancy uniform? I thought house elves just wore old rags." Creature certainly did, no matter how many clothes Harry gave him.

Draco shrugged. "My parents gave them all those uniforms on the Emancipation Day, and told them they were free to leave. The ones who chose to stay would be paid a good salary and work regular hours. They all stayed. I gave Mino and Tupper new clothes as well, but they are too old to change their ways now."

The discussion of house elves was soon forgotten as Draco's sponge moved higher. Harry shifted closer, practically wrapping his legs around his husband, and leaned in for a kiss. It had been weeks since they had first kissed, since the first real kiss in the shed, and Harry couldn't get over how good they still felt. Draco seemed to feel the same, his mouth opening to deepen the kiss, wet hands pulling Harry closer.

They got caught up in it, hands stroking over each other, kisses that went down their necks, nibbling on ears. Harry leaned back, giving Draco better access to his neck, and they lost their balance, falling back together in the water. It was a large tub, and they were only under water for a couple seconds before sitting up, sputtering and untangling their limbs.

Draco was laughing the hardest, and Harry couldn't help but grin at his husband, looking a bit like a drowned rat with his wet hair hanging over his face. Seeing him smiling and completely at ease with Harry just made him happy, in a deep way that he had never felt before. Few would see Draco unguarded like this.

"Come here. I want to wash your hair." Harry motioned Draco to sit between his outstretched legs.

They had done this often, but they both still really enjoyed it. There was something so intimate about sitting naked together in the bath, and taking care of each other this way. Perhaps they were both a bit touch-starved, rarely out of touch when they were together.

Draco let out a low moan when Harry worked the fragrant shampoo into his hair, firmly massaging his scalp in circular motions. There was a showerhead on a hose, and Harry used it to rinse his hair thoroughly.

Trading positions, Draco did the same for Harry, dragging his fingers through his hair. He seemed to enjoy how thick and long it was getting, almost to Harry's shoulders. At work, Harry usually gathered it back in a low ponytail to stay out of his face.

Eventually, they got out of the tub and dried off. Just wearing towels around their waists, Draco styled his own hair while Harry combed out the tangles in his own. Then Draco worked on Harry's, conjuring up products as he deemed necessary.

Harry had never really worried much about his hair, too busy in his teenage years fighting Voldemort to master this basic skill. Now, he found he enjoyed Draco touching his hair, running his fingers through it, and happily let him do whatever he wanted with it to keep that attention happening. As a result, Draco had it looking better than ever, tousled waves parted slightly on one side.

The other good side of letting Draco play around with his hair was that it usually ended with Draco yanking it back and kissing Harry senseless. Messing his hair up all over again.

This time, Harry pulled away from Draco with a chuckle before it got too intense. "We have to go down for dinner soon."

"We can be quick." Draco said, kissing down Harry's neck in a way he knew Harry loved.

It was seriously tempting, but Harry regretfully shook his head. "I'm nervous enough seeing your father after all these years. I don't want to arrive to dinner late and looking like I was just debauching his son."

Rolling his eyes, Draco smoothed Harry's hair back down, and walked into the bedroom. "Fine." He dropped his towel, standing in his naked glory as Harry came into the room.

Chuckling, Harry got dressed, but could help sneaking glances over at Draco. He took his time dressing, making almost as sexy as a slow strip tease, hiding his pale skin little by little. Draco was wearing indigo robes, perfectly tailored to show off his slim body.

Harry was dressed more casually in dark khakis with a white button-up dress shirt. All he could do was make sure there were no wrinkles and the shirt was tucked in. He would have picked something nicer if he had known they would be coming here. He shrugged, looking over at Draco. "Will I do?"

Draco grinned a little, coming over to give him a quick kiss. "I feel like the luckiest man in the world, having you as my husband."

The sweet statement warmed Harry, battling against his nerves as Draco took his hand and led him down the stairs to the dining room. Narcissa and Lucius were already seated, chatting as they sipped red wine.

Lucius rose as they entered, his gray eyes scanning over Harry and lingering on their linked hands. "Draco, Harry." He nodded to them in greeting.

It was hardly a warm greeting between a father and son who hadn't seen each other for a while, and Harry could feel Draco's hand tighten in his. He gave it a small squeeze before letting go to sit down on one side of the table.

It was a relief to see the table wasn't as long as the one at the Manor. This one could likely seat about eight people. Draco's parents sat at either end, and Draco and Harry sat across from each other on the sides. Gorkey and another one of the house elves soon poured them wine and started serving the first course. Harry felt more at ease around them, knowing they were free elves and getting paid for their work.

They ate the soup quietly for a few minutes, the tension in the room rising. Harry glanced at Draco for guidance, following his lead. Narcissa even seemed a little tense, glancing towards her husband. Was anyone going to say anything, or was this whole meal going to be eaten in complete silence?

As the house elves cleared away the empty soup bowls, Lucius took a sip of his wine and leaned back in his chair. "So, when are you going to have a proper wedding ceremony?"

Harry was glad he was done eating, as he probably would have choked on his food. He looked over at Draco, imploring him to answer, since he had no idea what to say.

"Father, we have no plans to have a formal wedding." Draco sounded calm, but Harry knew him well enough to hear the slight tremble in his tone. He met his father's gaze, not backing down.

Lucius had always had a quiet, menacing presence, but the years had been hard on him. His hair had gone from pale blond to white, and was now cut short. Deep wrinkles made his face even more craggy, but still handsome. Draco definitely took after him, and Harry wondered if his husband would look like this in thirty or forty years.

The biggest change was his demeanor. He held Draco's gaze for what seemed like ages, but likely was less than a minute. He was the first to look away. "Do you care nothing about family honor anymore, Draco?" His voice wasn't as firm.

Draco let out a long breath. "There's a muggle expression that comes to mind, about closing the barn door after the horse has bolted." He chuckled lightly, looking towards Harry and over at his mother. "You have fled the country, I barely have enough money to keep the manor in good repair, and I can hardly go out in public without being insulted or worse. Who exactly would a big ceremony be for? Our old connections are scattered over ten countries."

Narcissa shot concerned looks between her husband and son. "Perhaps we could host something in the spring at our villa in Umbria. The weather is mild that time of year, with all the flowers in full bloom. People would be willing to travel to your wedding, Draco."

Harry could tell Draco was about to shoot the idea down, and he stretched out his foot to press lightly against Draco's under the table. "You know, that actually sounds quite nice, Narcissa. It is still a little early for Draco and I to make any firm plans though. We haven't been a couple that long." He dared to give her a small smile, and even looked over at Lucius.

The older man nodded, and asked Draco about his potions work. The tension seemed to dissipate as the conversation got going. Harry felt his shoulders relaxing, and rubbed his foot along Draco's.

"You know, Neville Longbottom keeps hinting that Draco should apply for the Potions Master position at Hogwarts." Harry couldn't resist saying.

Narcissa glanced over at her son, beaming. "Is this true? That would be perfect for you!"

Draco glared back at Harry, before answering her. "I know I could do the job, but would I really want to? Dealing with children all day long? Plus, I like working on my own, having the freedom to work on whatever I want to."

"You were good with Teddy when we visited Andromeda. I think you'd be fine with the students." Harry threw in. From Narcissa's comments in the conservatory, he knew she wanted Draco to get out into the world more, and Harry agreed. He had been hiding there long enough.

Narcissa pinned Harry with her dark eyes. "Andromeda Black?"

Harry nodded, noticing the flash of pain in her eyes. He hadn't wanted to bring up bad memories, but it was better they just faced hard topics and got past them, then tip-toeing around forever. "Yes. She's raising my godson, Teddy, so I see her often." He didn't correct her on Andromeda's surname of Tonks. Her marriage is what had made the Blacks disown her.

"The position at Hogwarts would be good step for you, Draco." Lucius commented as the house elves brought out the main course.

The conversation flowed again, discussing who was on staff at the school now, and the changes that had been done during the reconstruction. They kept away from the more sensitive subjects, getting through the meal relatively smoothly

…

"It's your turn to give me a massage, after making me sit through that." Harry joked as they finally closed the door to their suite. He rolled his shoulders, trying to work out the tension from being on his best behavior for the last few hours. "Besides, you don't have to go to any uncomfortable in-law dinners for me, so you owe me even more."

Draco scoffed. "What you lack in family, you make up in friends. I've been to the Weasley's and to Andromeda's place. They are your family."

Harry couldn't argue with that, and Draco had done pretty well coming with Harry to some social gatherings. It was all part of being a couple, and still felt really awkward at times. "I can't believe your parents want to have a big, fancy wedding for us."

"Yeah. How the hell would that not be a shit show?" Draco chuckled, undoing his robes and draping them over a chair. He walked over, working on undoing Harry's buttons.

Sighing as Draco drew off his shirt, Harry started undoing his own belt. Draco tutted, brushing his hands away, and unfastening it himself. Soon, he had Harry stripped down to his briefs.

Sitting on the edge of the bed, Draco pulled Harry into position in front on him, his hands on his hips. He kissed over Harry's stomach, glancing upwards, his eyes getting darker. "I've been wanting to suck you off since we were in the bath. I kept thinking about crawling under that dining room table."

Harry grabbed his wand to cast colloportus and muffliato spells. He didn't want them to be overheard or interrupted. Draco was nuzzling his face against his erection, mouthing him through the fabric. Harry pushed a hand into his hair, loving the feel of the silky blond strands.

Draco tugged his underwear off, eagerly exploring him, kissing and licking. Harry widened his stance, to be more stable and give Draco even better access. He loved looking down, watching as his husband teased him, his hands and mouth drawing out deep moans and soft swears. Draco loved it, his eyes gleaming as he made Harry tremble and beg, taking him deep, making Harry pull at his hair. His hands went to Draco's shoulders, squeezing as he hit his peak.

Grinning, Draco eased Harry on to the bed beside him, running his hand over his heaving chest. He leaned in to lick up sone sweat along his collarbone, before moving up to give him a deep kiss. "Don't fall asleep. I'm not done with you yet."

Harry chuckled weakly. "Oh Merlin…" Draco, when he was in this type of mood, was a force to be reckoned with.

"Turn over." Draco murmured, taking a small bite of the skin on Harry's shoulder. Hungry, and wanting more.

Lying on his stomach, Harry spread his legs and sighed when Draco spread warmed lotion over his back, rubbing firmly into his shoulders. It was the massage he had requested, made even better by both being naked. Draco's hard cock often rubbed against his ass as he stroked over Harry's back.

By the time his hands moved lower, Harry was starting to feel aroused again. Draco worked his lubed fingers into him, taking his time. Before long, he was rocking back against him, moaning and begging for more.

Draco rolled him over on to his back, looking into his eyes as he slowly pushed in. Harry loved this, feeling so connected and intimate, watching Draco as they both got closer and closer to the edge. It got more intense, Draco almost folding him in half, moving fast and hard. It was both what they both needed, and they soon collapsed together.

"Mmmmmm…," Harry moaned, stretching out on the bed, feeling completely boneless. Well fucked.

Draco gave him a sated grin, looking pleased as he did a quick cleaning spell over them. "I soooo needed that." He rolled onto his back, pulling the sheet up over them.

Harry propped himself up on one elbow to look down at Draco. "Am I the first man you've brought home to meet your parents?"

This got Draco chuckling. "Well, they have known you almost as long as I have. This was hardly you 'meeting the parents'."

"Meeting them as your partner." Harry rolled his eyes at Draco's semantics. "Have they ever met one of your boyfriends?"

Draco scrunched up his face at the word. "No. It really hasn't been that open between us. I know my mother accepts me as I am, and my father is coming around to the idea. I wouldn't have 'shoved it in their face' by coming here with a boyfriend years ago."

Harry thought about it, considering the bigger effect of being with Draco. "Do you really think there's any way we could have a formal wedding? I would want my non-pureblood friends to attend, and your family and friends would have to treat them well. Plus, how accepting of us would everyone be?"

"I can't believe you are really thinking about this. We are only 'married' by accident. Without that curse breaking ceremony, we would probably only be sleeping at each other's places most nights, and gradually meeting each other's friends." Draco brushed Harry's hair back off his face.

Nodding in agreement, Harry knew that everything was strangely rushed between them. It was funny to imagine things happening in a more normal way, like running into each other at a café and ending up sharing a table to catch up. Regular chatting that eased into tentative flirting, somehow leading to making dinner plans. Going out on dates, and sharing a first kiss at the end of a date. Holding hands, more kisses, and eventually spending a night together. Letting things develop at a more normal pace.

Instead, Draco had kissed him awake, kissed him a dozen more times while he was unconscious, barely talking to each other most days. Living together in a forced situation, their underlying attraction slowly drawing them together. Then being together almost constantly since then, and 'married' within a couple weeks of their first real kiss. It had gotten out and seemed to be widely known now, without as big a backlash as Harry had feared.

"We could go back to that, you know. When the honeymoon is over. I love you and know I want to be with you, but it would be nice to let things grow between us in a more normal way." Harry said, lying back down flat on his back, looking up at the ceiling.

Draco was quiet for a little while, the room almost completely dark. "By the end of the honeymoon, you'll likely be working full hours again. Maybe it would be easier for you to sleep at Grimmauld Place than at my house some nights."

"Would you come there on those nights?" Harry reached out, taking Draco's hand.

He could hear Draco's small sigh of relief, and knew Draco had been testing the waters. Seeing if Harry wanted more space, to have nights apart. He definitely didn't.

Draco squeezed his hand back. "Yes, I could do that."

…

After the honeymoon, they fell into a new lifestyle. Spending every night together still, but split between both houses. At Draco's, they worked in the garden and the shed, and chased a snitch, enjoying the quiet, green surroundings. At Harry's, they worked on updating the décor of Grimmauld House, alternated picking restaurants to try out, and often visited with Harry's friends.

Full moons were always at the Manor, pulling the round moon bed into the yard, and building a more modest bonfire. Draco taught Harry some better dance steps, and laughed when Harry tried to teach him the Macarena. Some nights were cool or rainy, but they still slept outside, huddled together under a down comforter with an impervious charm to keep them dry. They always felt even more bonded after each full moon.

…

"I can't believe we are on another honeymoon." Draco chuckled, passing Harry an icy Gin and Tonic, before sitting down on a lounge chair with his own.

Harry took a long sip, savoring the refreshing drink. "I needed this week, just the two of us, after that wedding." He closed his eyes against the bright sunlight, and considered going for another dip in the ocean.

It had been a year, and they had weathered through the hard times, being there for each other. Harry had gone back to being an Auror, but found he wasn't as reckless, knowing he wanted to return home in one piece to his husband. Draco had overcome his reservations about the Potions Master position at Hogwarts, finally agreeing to trying it for a year. Harry tried not to be smug when Draco eventually admitted he loved it.

Visiting Draco's parents every couple months had made Narcissa drop more frequent hints about a wedding, and Harry had asked her about his concerns. In the end, they had agreed to marry at the villa at Umbria, with only twenty guests from each side. A quiet, intimate ceremony, making vows of love to each other in front of the people they cared about the most. It had been surprisingly freeing, sharing their commitment before everyone, knowing they chose to be together.

They served apple cake at the reception.

...

-A/N: I hope you enjoyed this epilogue. It gas been fun writing my first Drarry story.

-Seven House Elves: I couldn't resist thinking of the Malfoy's house elves as the seven dwarves. The idea of having Grumpy as Lucius' valet made me chuckle. :)


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